Life After Letters
by Lady Melanthe
Summary: Placed after the events of "Dear Mother," Kaname and Senri marry and are preparing to live their lives together with their daughter, Mizuki, when hardships and drama soon threaten their happily ever after. Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Knight or any of the official characters that are used or mentioned in this fanfic. Warning: contains incest, mentions of mpreg, and yaoi.
1. Chapter 1: Senri

**Author's comments:**

**This is being written upon request by the same person who requested "Dear Mother." I hope it's just as good as (or better) than the prequel to this fanfic because I've honestly spent months working on this (I literally have over 22 pages of just this one chapter on my computer.) I'll try to post the second chapter as soon as possible hopefully in a far shorter time span than it took me to post this. A word of warning though, the next chapter will most likely be rated M for, ya know, the honeymoon night...**

**Let me know what you think in the reviews.**

Chapter 1:

_Come on, Senri. Get ahold of yourself_. I tell myself and I once again try the breathing exercises that Rima taught me back when I was pregnant with Mizuki. They used to work, but as I try them for my- what did Takuma call them?- pre-wedding jitters- or something like that- they don't seem to help much. I wipe my hands on the legs of my pants but that only works for a few minutes before they're damp again. Now I'm worrying about holding Kaname's hand down the aisle.

I look over at my fiancé and am surprised to see him looking so composed; as if he's incapable of feeling anything but calm and in control. Then I remember how stressed he was during my pregnancy and can't stop the small smile that tugs at the corners of my mouth.

Kaname looks over at me and smiles. "What's so funny?" he asks and I shake my head. "It's nothing." I tell him. He comes to me and pulls me to him. "Are you sure?"

I nod. "I was just wondering how you can stay so calm."

Kaname arches a brow. "Calm?" he laughs, "I'm terrified."

"…Really?"

"Well, not as much as I was with Mizuki," _No one could be as stressed as you were back then_, "But still."

"Well, you're really good at hiding it then." I can feel a low rumble in his chest with his laughs again.

"Am I? I've never noticed." I have to resist the incredible urge to roll my eyes at that. How could he _not _notice? As usual though he seems to read my thoughts - is he really?- and takes ahold of my hand. "Here, let me show you." And he presses the palm of my hand to his chest. At first I don't know why but then I feel it, his heart pounding hard in chest from… _anxiety?_ I look up at him surprised. "See? I'm not perfect, Senri."

But he is; if not in general than he is to me! I want to tell him this but when I open my mouth to talk I hear, "Am I interrupting?"

Kaname and I look up to see our friend, Takuma, standing beyond the gazebo we are under. He's beaming up at us with a sort of radiance that's almost blinding and a smile that's somehow wider than it usually is.

"No." Kaname answers. "What is it?"

"I just came to ask you two if you're ready to start the ceremony?" Takuma chirps still glowing. Kaname and I share a short gaze before telling him yes. At that my bubbly blond friend leaves practically skipping with enthusiasm as if _he's _the one getting married. Regardless I wish I can be as carefree as him.

The second he's gone I start to feel sick. I don't mean that I'm feeling ill- that's almost impossible for me as an aristocrat- but so anxious that I feel like curling up into a ball. I feel a coil starting to form in the pit of my stomach and as Kaname checks his silver rose cufflinks and satin bowtie I feel it starting to tighten even more.

A series of scenarios play out for me ranging from me postponing the wedding out of shear nervousness to me passing out halfway down the aisle. I'm still panicking when Kaname holds out his hand.

"Shall we go?" he asks and I give an unsure jerking nod. I wipe my hands on my pants one last time before taking his hand.

Before we leave Kaname kisses my cheek. "Everything's going to be fine." He assures me with tender eyes, "This is going to be the wedding of our dreams; I promise." It's a comfort and I give him a small smile. It's not much but it's enough for us.

Upon our arrival Kaname and I are introduced to a crowd of our friends and family by the sound of violins. Everyone turns around in their seats to face us and the coil in my stomach sinks. I squeeze Kaname's hand. It feels like my first catwalk all over again and I'm more relieved than I thought I would be when we finally reach the wedding arch. The officiant- an aging vampire with thinning brown and grey hair- welcomes us with a smile and half bow before beginning the ceremony.

"We are gathered here today in this beautiful garden to join together Kaname Kuran-sama and Senri Shiki-sama." The man starts. "On behalf of the couple I would like to thank all who could attend this ceremony. By being here you celebrate with these two men the love that they have discovered within one another and you support their decision to commit themselves to one another for the rest of their lives."

I glance back over my shoulder at the crowd. The officiant makes it sound so easy, but I know that supporting Kaname and I is a challenge. I mean, we're cousins getting married after having a child together. I don't like to think about it much but I know deep inside that pretty much everything about our relationship is very much tabooed. Seeing everyone sitting there smiling up at us, though, helps reassure me that everything really will be okay.

"We are here to celebrate love. This is the union of two individuals; two hearts, two bodies, two minds, and two souls. Therefore, marriage is not to be entered into lightly, but reverently, honestly, and deliberately. And it is into this union that Kaname Kuran sama and Senri Shiki sama come now to be joined. Now, two readings to express the joy and love on this occasion the first being 'From Leaves of Grass' by Walt Whitman, the second is the 'Arbor' by Sappho." The officiant clears his throat before reading the poems from a small book that he has in his hands.

I'm familiar with both poems. Kaname used to read them- along with other poetry- out loud late at night. Sometimes I would sit across from him on the couch listening to the mellow sound of his voice with my eyes closed and our child kicking in my stomach. They're likable works so I wasn't surprised when Kaname wanted at least one of them to be read.

When the readings are done the officiant clears his throat again.

"Now then, will you Senri Shiki take Kaname Kuran to be your life partner, to love and respect; to be honest with and the to stand by through whatever may come?"

I look at him, my cousin, my fiancé, the father of my daughter, and one of the most important people in my life and say without hesitation, "I will."

The officiant asks Kaname the same thing and still staring into my eyes he says, "I will." There is a sniffle from the crowd and I look to see the headmaster wiping his eyes.

"Now, Senri and Kaname sama, it is time for your vows."

"Senri Shiki sama please repeat after me." He says and I do, word for word.

"In the presence of our friends and family, I, Senri Shiki, choose you, Kaname Kuran, to be my life partner, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better for worse, for richer for poorer, in sickness and in health, in joy and in sorrow, to love and to cherish, and to be faithful to you alone. This is my solemn vow."

Then,

"In the presence of our friends and family, I, Kaname Kuran, choose you, Senri Shiki, to be my life partner, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better for worse, for richer for poorer, in sickness and in health, in joy and in sorrow, to love and to cherish, and to be faithful to you alone. This is my solemn vow."

With the vows said and done the rings are presented to us by Rima's little brother on a dark red pillow.

"These rings symbolize the never-ending circle of love. May they remind you always of the vows you have taken this day and of the eternal love which you both share. Now take these rings as a symbol of this commitment, that wherever you go, you will return to each other, whatever you have you will share with each other, for your lives are joined in love and trust."

Kaname takes my hand. "With this ring I commit my heart and soul to you." He says as he slips the ring onto my finger.

I take the ring from the pillow and do the same, repeating the same phrase.

Our guests instantly erupt into a series of applauds forcing the officiant to wait a good three minutes before he is able to announce our marriage.

"With the power invested in me I now pronounce you married. You may now kiss."

While Kaname and I have unquestionably kissed before the wedding, the kiss at the altar is somehow… different. My heart soars in my chest as we kiss and for a moment everything and everyone just disappears. It's just me and him then, trying desperately to hold onto at least some ounce of control so that we don't end up clawing at each other like animals, pulling at our clothes and our hair…

I feel weak in the knees once we separate and it reminds of the first time that we kissed, back when I thought I was dreaming the whole situation up until Kaname's lips on mine sent my heart pounding and my mind racing.

Kaname holds onto me to keep me from falling. Then, without warning, he kisses me again, harder this time to the point that I think my lips are bruised. And it's in this moment- as people whistle and clap and Takuma repeats a series of aww's- that I think, _I can't possibly become happier than this._

**More author comments:**

**I'm still looking for a beta reader for this fanfic. Message me if you're interested and I'll check out your beta profile. Also, I made up Rima's little brother in this chapter. I don't recall her having any younger siblings but I couldn't think of any official Vampire Knight characters who would be able to fulfill the role of ring bearer.**


	2. Chapter 2: Kaname

**Author's comments:**

**I'm terrible at updating…. Also this chapter is in Kaname's pov. The person who requested this wanted it to be in both Senri and Kaname's povs so I'm trying to switch back and forth between them. Enjoy.**

Chapter 2:

Yellow lights flicker in his eyes from the streetlamps. He licks his lips making them glimmer and smiles. When Senri leans his head on my shoulder the smell of his cologne fills my nose. I wrap my arms around him and nuzzle his hair. We sit like this in silence, Senri listening to the beating of my heart and I to the rumbling of passing car engines and the low jazz music that filters in from the driver's radio system. These are the moments that I have come to live for.

When we pull up to our destination I help Senri out of the limousine and take his arm. The reception's location was a warehouse that, as far as humans were concerned, has long since been abandoned. Tasteless graffiti covers the outside walls. Litter clutters the sidewalk cracked with blades of dying grass peeking up from in between. The air reeks of smog and cigarette smoke. Inside, the sweet scent of frankincense and lavender drift from oil lanterns. Senri wipes his hands on his pants before we enter.

Our arrival is announced by the master of ceremony. Our guests applaud and line up to give us their congratulations. Among them is Sara who instantly insists on making her presence known above all else.

"That was a lovely ceremony, Kaname." She says and she flashes a smile that makes Senri cringe beneath her gaze. I squeeze his hand and trace small circles with my thumb.

"Thank you very much, Sara." My faux smile widens.

"You are welcome. I saw your daughter by the way." Senri frowns. "She is absolutely precious. I imagine that this was a good time for her birth. I hear taboo is in this time of year."

A part of me wants to tear out her blackened heart. The other part of me welcomes her presence. For hours I have been plagued with vulgar thoughts of my beloved Senri. Who else to cool the fires of my passion than her? So I continue to smile and take her back handed compliments with a grain of salt until she slithers away.

"Now I see why not many people invite Shirabuki-sama to parties." Senri mutters. I laugh.

"That's why _we _didn't invite her."

A few other uninvited guests, mostly purebloods and their entourage, plague the reception but none of them are quite as bad as Sara. A few actually try to give their honest congratulations and when Senri asks if they were being sarcastic I assure him that they weren't; purebloods just appear that way. Still, it is tedious speaking to people we have no desire to be here.

Thankfully, we are soon able to find refuge with my mother-in-law and our daughter-

"Kaname! Kaname!" Kaien Cross runs up to us with tears whelming up in his eyes. "Miss Shiki won't let me hold the baby." He points an accusing finger back at my mother-in-law who scowls at him. She presses Mizuki close to her bosom. "Leave us alone." She shouts. He scrunches up his face and clenches his fist as if on the verge of throwing a fit.

"Make her share!"

Sometimes I honestly feel as if I'm surrounded by children. It's hard to remember that he was once a revered hunter. As Kaien tries once again to take Mizuki from Lady Shiki I wonder if he has really become this way or if he is acting.

Senri steps forward and sits down beside his mother. "Mother," he says, "Will you please let the headmaster hold Mizuki for a little?"

Lady Shiki frowns. "But she's my grandchild. I want to keep holding her." Senri prepares to say something more when Kaien interrupts him.

"Please? I promise I'll give her right b-" Lady Shiki gives him a look that could chill the blood of any man- human or vampire. Kaien pales instantly and before I know it he is behind me.

"How can she be so scary?" He whimpers and grabs onto me as if I am his shield.

I chuckle. "I believe it was William Congreve who said 'Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned'." Senri looks up at me and raises a brow.

"How do you automatically know who said that?"

I shrug. "I just do."

Senri looks me up and down for a moment before turning back to his mother.

"You really are spoiled, mother." Lady Shiki ignores him though and instead begins to snuggle Mizuki.

"She has hair like ours." She muses. "Maybe I'll give her my brush one day as a gift. It's made of only the finest materials."

"I know. I also know that Mizuki will love it."

Lady Mizuki continues to coddle her grandchild until suddenly her expression contorts. Kaien becomes alert aware of her outbursts. "What's wrong with her eyes?"

"Um… I don't know what you mean." Senri flashes Rima a confused look. Rima, who sat on the other side of Lady Shiki, looks to me.

"Her eyes. They aren't blue like ours. What's wrong with them?"

Senri falls silent for a moment. "Mother," He says, "There is nothing wrong with Mizuki's eyes. They're like Kaname's. She has his eyes just as she has my hair." Lady Shiki looks up at him.

"Kaname? Why does that name sound familiar?"

Senri frowns deeply. Until now I never realized how hard it must've been for my beloved to grow up with a mother so… unwell. Yes, he had spoken of her before and- when something would remind him of her- had told me stories of when he was younger. But as I watch him struggle to explain to her who I was I couldn't help but pity the child who had to comfort his ill mother all those years. Could she really be a part of Mizuki's life?

"This is Kaname, mother." Senri stands and takes my hand in his. When Lady Shiki turns her gaze to me I smile as warmly as I can. Taking her condition into consideration I do not take her hand but choose to bow humbly before her.

"It is a pleasure to meet you in person, Lady Shiki. I hope you are enjoying yourself."

She stares at me for a moment, searching for something familiar. Suspense pulses off of Senri in waves as he waits for how she will react to me. Finally, she smiles back.

"It is a pleasure to meet you as well." She says. Her radiance shines through her madness and I see where Senri inherited his splendor.

With a certain disaster averted Senri and I are soon called away for the first dance. Our guests have begun to crowd around the cleared away dance floor. The silver flowers from the spotlights twirl along the floor as petals swirl up into the air. The song "I can't help falling in love with you" begins to filter from the speakers and I take Senri into my arms. I was never a Presley fan but Senri had his heart set on the song. I have to admit that it isn't bad. I remember Mizuki kicking excitedly in Senri's stomach when I approved the song. Memories like that make my yearning for him all the worse.

By the time the song stops I realize that I had been so caught up in my mind that I lost track of time. As I pluck a petal from his hair I find myself being torn between wanting that dance to have lasted just a little bit longer and wanting this whole event to be over as soon as possible. That way it's just us again, in each other's arms, craving touch after touch…

The cake is brought out shortly after. It is five tiers decked with blush red fondant roses that cascade down the sides. The stand is lined in pearls that catch the light and glisten like diamonds. Silver intertwined hearts stand on top. Senri takes up the knife balancing on the edge and eyes me. There is a hungry gleam in his eyes and I have to flash him warning look to deter him from cutting my hand. He pouts but doesn't cut me. A wave of confusion washes over our guests once we cut the cake.

"What kind of cake is that?"

"Was that intentional?"

"What a strange cake…"

Even Senri looks up at me baffled.

"This is what you wanted, correct? We never fully decided on the wedding cake so I decided to do both. It is half and half."

Senri looks down at the cake then back at me. Without warning he bounces up and kisses me firm on the lips. It leaves me stunned and Senri laughs sweetly at my shock. I can hear Kaien saying how cute we are and Takuma cheerfully warning us to "save it for the honeymoon." Someone else giggles but I can't tell who. Once I regain myself I smile.

"I'm glad you like it."

We dig into the cake slice on the porcelain plate and feed it to one another. The taste is- how can I put this?- unique. The moment I taste the bitter tang of peppermint and red velvet a sharp shiver shoots through my body. Senri's face scrunches up. He squeezes his eyes shut and puckers his lips thrashing his head back and forth.

"Kaname?" he whimpers.

"Yes?"

"You were right. It was just the cravings talking." He really is adorable; too adorable really for either of our own good.

A smudge of icing lingers of the corner of his lips. I want to lick it away but settle for wiping it off with a finger. My thumb stills on the corner of his plump lips for just a second too long as my mind races to every single dirty thing that I can to do with them. Senri's eyes flicker to mine and I see the want in his eyes. Before I lose the little control that I have left I withdraw from him like his skin is fire and wipe my hand on a napkin.

I initially thought- with that look in his eyes- that Senri would be ready to go the second the event was over but it seems not. We stay a few minutes longer as he insists no giving Kaien further instructions on how to care for Mizuki. Kaien nods and tries his best to scribble down everything that Senri tells him into a notebook. Yuki holds Mizuki and listens almost as diligently as the headmaster.

"D-don't you think you two should get going?" Kaien asks.

"Not yet. Now make sure you play Mozart's moonlight sonata before she goes to sleep. It's number five on the track I gave you …"

Kaien looks to me for help.

I wait a little longer until Kain insists that I'm being "unnecessarily cruel".

"Come, Senri. Everyone is waiting to see us off." I take Senri's arm and lead him away but not before kissing Mizuki on the forehead and thanking Kaien and Yuki for volunteering to look after her. Even as we walk away Senri continues to shout back to the poor man.

Our guests throw rose petals and white confetti as we leave. We wave to them, thank them for attending, and slip into the limousine. We are in each other's arms the moment the door closes behind us.

Teeth scrape soft lips as they part. Tongues tangle between our lips as soft moans escape in between gasps of breath. The taste of the cake and the reception wine are still on his tongue. When we pull away it's only to catch our breath and even then it's too long for us to be apart. Senri's cheeks are already flushed bright red. His eyes are wide, wild and dark as he stares at me from behind his bangs. My beloved's hands are cold as they caress my cheeks. He peppers my face and neck with kisses.

Senri gives a startled squeal as I tug him up into my lap. His thigh settles on my groin. He's bringing me closer and closer to losing my mind each time he squirms against my cock. It throbs and hardens painfully in my trousers. He mewls. I know he feels the heat radiating against his leg. He wants it, my cock deep inside of him. Sensations explode in my mind. Senri's grinding his body down on me.

I grab him by the hips and thrust up against him pinning him there to just take it, to feel my desire for him. Hard. I bite his ear lobe. His body arches. Senri reaches back and grabs my hands. He doesn't pull them away but claws at the knuckles drawing blood. The car swerves. When I look down at his lap I see his cock straining beneath the fabric.

"Soon." I breathe into his ear. "Soon."

By the time we arrive to our honeymoon home we are nearly out of our minds with desire. Senri leaps from the car like an excited child surprising the driver. He grabs my arm and tugs me up the cobblestone pathway to the door. I'm barely able to tell the man that he is dismissed. As I try to retrieve the key and unlock the door Senri struggles to undo my bowtie. My ear tingles with his breath washing over the side of my face with every pant.

The inside of the villa is cool, made only worse by the vaulted ceilings and cold marble flooring. I had planned to at least make it to the bedroom door but Senri has other ideas. With surprising strength he pulls me down to the floor. I try unbuttoning my shirt but he's beautifully impatient and, shoving my hands away, rips open the tuxedo himself. Pristine buttons roll across the floor. He'll hate himself tomorrow when he realizes he ruined a garment made by his favorite designer, but for now that is the furthest thing from his mind.

The soft smacking of our lips fill the foyer. My scalp stings as he tugs at my hair and his nails scratch at the nape of my neck. We kiss bruising lips and piercing them with little nicks from our teeth.

"I want you so badly." I sigh against his lips. When I begin to undress him, he hesitates and grips my hands.

"What's wrong?" I ask him. He blushes but shakes his head.

"It- it's fine. It's nothing." He tells me. He lets go of my hand.

"Are you sure?" I don't know what has come over him but he continues to insist that everything is okay.

"Just fuck me." He says. He draws me to him and lays a single kiss on my lips. His arms fall away allowing me to undress him. I do it slowly, tormenting us both as each layer is removed piece by piece. He keens long and heavy and his body arches up in a perfect bow when I lick at a nipple. I lap at it, catch it between my teeth and tug lightly until I hear him cry my name. I purposely ignore the other nipple making him grumble. Butterfly kisses down his stomach and his skin rises in goose bumps beneath my breath. I stop just above his cock.

It's erect with a small drop of precum balances on the tip. His pants grow heavy and I can feel his body tense up beneath my fingers when I lick the drop away.

"Don't do that. I won't be able to stop myself from-" He bites his tongue when I swallow him down. His hips jerk to the side then bucks upwards forcing his cock further down my throat. I choke for a moment but finally get into a rhythm. No matter how many times I do this with him I always feel like a bit of an amateur when I deep throat Senri.

It isn't long before he comes. I could've moved in time to avoid that ejaculation but I don't and it sputters into my mouth. His semen is sweet on my tongue thanks to his love of strawberries and Rima's forcing him to drink herbal tea. It drips down my chin and when I am about to wipe it away Senri stops me.

"Let me." He sits up and licks his cum away, his tongue trailing up to my lips before he kisses me; blood and semen.

"You know I wanted to cum with you." Senri chides.

"We have all night for that." I shed my ripped shirt and jacket and undo my pants. I move behind him and coax him on his hands and knees. I stare at him for a moment, at the subtle curves in his body, the delicate arch in his back and the way his cock presses against his navel.

I lick my lips imagining my cock shoved between his cheeks. "Finger yourself." He groans but does so without hesitation. Never mind one finger, he shoves two inside of his hole, pressing them further and further in until they're to the knuckle. Two fingers quickly become three and he's starting to breathe heavy.

I stroke myself as I watch him wither. He looks back at me. When he squeezes his eyes shut and moans I know that he's found his prostate. Still stroking myself I kneel down behind him. His hole quivers when I blow on it. When I push my finger in alongside his, his pretty hole clenches tight before opening wide. I spit on the cleft of his ass. That and the precum from my cock and Senri's saliva will have to do for now. The lubrication is upstairs in the bedroom and neither of us have the discipline to stop and go retrieve it.

"I'm going to make you beg, dear." I fuck into him before he can say a word. Just a few inches into that tight hot hole and we both moan from deep down in our throats.

Senri screams and claws at the floor. His ass greedily swallows more and more of my cock, stretching and withering around my length. I don't realize that I've been holding my breath until I'm settled deep inside of him and exhale. I don't know which I like more, the sound of his moans and pleads, or the way that he takes me without even straining.

His arms buckle and I wrap an arm around his torso to keep him steady. I thrust deep inside of him, hard, fucking him so hard his body quakes with each thrust. He takes it beautifully though, as he always has.

"Oh god."

I slide my hand along the curve of his hip and rest it low on his abdomen. There, in the pit of his stomach, I feel the bulge of my cock thrusting against his insides. Against the palm of my hand I feel it, there then gone each time I withdraw.

"Fuck me, fuck me, oh _yes_ fuck me!" I grab his hair and pull him back onto his heels, still pounding into him. This way I can thrust even deeper into that suffocating heat than before. His throaty moan is muffled by a kiss, hard against his mouth, bruising his lips and clashing against teeth.

Senri likes it when I grab him by the throat. Loves it when I tighten my grip to the point that he can barely breathe, when he's struggling to gasp each time I rub against his prostate.

I feel my mind starting to fog over and I know that I am about to cum. Instinctively I start to stroke Senri's cock. He clenches his teeth and groans from deep down in his throat. When he cums he cums hard screaming my name at the top of his lungs. His hole convulses around me and it's like white lightening dancing in my head.

I want so badly to finish inside of him. I want to cum deep inside of him and watch it drip from his gape. But we can't risk it right now, not after we've just had a baby, so when I feel myself about to lose it completely I pull out. Senri whimpers. He clenches and unclenches desperately wanting me back inside but instead I jerk myself off a little more and finish on his back.

"I couldn't." I gasp. "I couldn't do it." I couldn't cum inside of him. Not yet. Not so soon.

As we cool down I guide Senri back onto his hands and knees. When I release him he slumps forward flat against the floor. He's breathing heavy and I see that his eyes have glazed over. He licks his lips and swallows hard. As he regains himself I pick him up and carry him to the bedroom. There we make love until the sun rises. Afterwards we rest sated and exhausted in each other's arms.

"I love you, Senri." I tell him, trailing my fingers across his hips. He smiles lazily and snuggles closer.

"The second the sun goes down," He mumbles beneath his breath. "I'm gonna ride you." He falls asleep then, snoring lightly into my side. I find myself waiting eagerly for the sun to set.

**More author's comments:**

**I'm still looking for a beta reader. If you are interested private message me. **


	3. Chapter 3: Senri

**Author's comments:**

**My deepest apologies for how long it took to upload this. Fingers crossed that it doesn't take me nearly as long to update again. Anyway, hope you enjoy.**

Chapter 3 (Senri):

I've noticed lately that Mizuki cries every time the doorbell rings. The noise is nothing special, just a simple chime, but every time she hears it she throws a fit. Rima thinks it's adorable. Takuma thought that maybe the doorbell was too loud. I would agree with that if it wasn't for the fact that she does the same thing whenever someone knocks. I'm afraid that my daughter is antisocial at an early age. I think about this as she starts to scream and cry yet again.

"Sshh. Sshh. It's okay, Mizu. We just have guests." I try to calm her down, but that only makes her cry louder. Yep. My daughter is antisocial.

Kaname asks the maid dusting the picture frames if she can answer the door. The woman nods and hurries off down the hall. Once she's out of the room Kaname puts down the book that he's been pretending to read for the past half hour and comes over to where I'm sitting. Without saying a word he places his hand on top of Mizuki's head and strokes her temple with his thumb. Our daughter stops crying instantly.

_She's like an alarm clock. _

The maid soon returns. "Kuran-sama and Shiki-sama are right this way." She gestures to our unknown guests and steps aside as they come in.

My mother and uncle enter the room. I instantly become nervous. While I saw my mother a little over a week ago at the reception, I haven't seen my uncle for months; since I was pregnant with Mizuki actually. It's a surprise that he's even here. Kaname seems just as put off by his sudden visit as I am. Still, he puts on his usual cover up smile and greets my- his?- relatives.

"I hope you don't mind our coming." My uncle says. He bows before my husband. It's weird, really. I mean- I know it's expected given Kaname's status, but still…

"No. We don't mind at all." Kaname says. He welcomes my uncle with a handshake and my mother with a pleasant smile.

My uncle nods in my direction. "Senri."

"Hello, uncle." Eh, this certainly isn't awkward…

I turn to greet my mother. "Hello, mothe-"

"There's my little Mizuki!" She runs forward and snatches Mizuki up from my arms. "I've _missed_ you!" I try, but I honestly can't remember her ever being this excited to see me. I soon come to the conclusion that she used to, only I've forgotten.

"We just couldn't wait to see you all." My uncle says.

'_We' or 'she'?_

"Well we're glad to see you both." Kaname gestures for them to take a seat.

My uncle makes a real effort not to sit next to his sister and the baby. It's as if he'll be sitting next to a disfigured mutt rather than his own grandniece with a look like that.

My uncle clears his throat. "So. How was the- erm- honeymoon?" He looks back and forth between the two of us.

"It was... fine. At least the beach was beautiful." I look to my mother. "Thank you for recommending that place, mother. It really was everything that you said it was." _For the most part. _I think, a certain dilemma from the trip still on my mind.

My mother doesn't respond to me. She's occupied with Mizuki to pay attention though I forgive it.

"I agree. It was perfect." Kaname.

My uncle raises a brow. "Is that so? And you didn't have any trouble?" he asks.

Kaname shakes his head, the smile faint. "Not at all."

I'm not sure if Kaname's lying to my uncle or if he's genuinely forgotten about the incident that occurred on this "perfect beach".

You see, during our honeymoon Kaname and I spent a good amount of our time on the beach; sometimes laying out in the sand or walking along the shore line letting the water wash up around our feet (skinny dipping once while no one else was around.) During one of these times we had come across another young couple. At first we and the other couple ignored each other. Then, just as they got close to us, something happened… I remember the woman- some overly tanned blonde- looking me up and down. She then leaned in and whispered something in the man's ear. I couldn't hear what she had said to him but I did catch what he said back.

"That's fuckin' disgusting. Can't they keep that shit private or somethin'?" It was only for a split second but in that moment I felt my blood run cold and my heart still.

Disgusting? Us? Before that I had never run into any real discrimination. Sure, there were a few surprised and awkward glances back while I was really pregnant, but never anything like people calling Kaname and I "disgusting". I suppose that was because, while I was pregnant, I was primarily around people who knew me. Classmates, fellow models, etc. they all knew who I was and for the most part who the father was. No one dared to say anything negative to me for fear of what Kaname would do. But these people- humans- had no idea who we were and said these things without fear.

At first I was shocked, then hurt, and then partially embarrassed. I wanted to let go of Kaname's hand but he held on tight and wouldn't let go.

"Don't listen to them." He said, squeezing my hand but the experience was already engraved in my mind. We never spoke of the issue again but for the rest of the honeymoon I trod carefully, conscious of the fact that not everyone would understand us.

Mizuki's crying snaps me out of my head.

"What's wrong with her?" my mother asks. She's trying her best to bounce and shush her granddaughter but it's not working. Confusion and worry are beginning to show on her face, but I know that cry and know it's nothing to panic about.

"She's just hungry, mother." I say as I take Mizuki from her. "I'll go feed her." Out the corner of my eye, as I'm walking out of the room and telling everyone that I'll be back, I see my uncle twist his mouth. He says nothing though.

In the kitchen I retrieve a bottle from the fridge. For now we have mostly been giving Mizuki Kaname's blood. He thinks it'll be a good idea to make her as strong as possible as early as possible. "And what will be better than using the blood of a pureblood?" I couldn't argue with that reasoning.

As I'm preparing her bottle, Mizuki begins to open and close her mouth greedily. Despite being so young she's already mastered the annoyed expression that now shows on her face.

"I'm _trying_ to hurry, Mizu." I groan. Before having one I had no idea babies needed to eat this much. It's pretty much constantly, day and night, _all _the time. I regret not having done more research on being a parent, like Kaname did.

Mizuki quiets down upon getting her bottle. With her crying quieted (for now) I go back to the others in the living room. My mother is standing by the window when I walk in while my uncle and Kaname are sitting across from one another, chatting over tablet blood. My husband looks up at me and smiles making my heart flutter.

"Ah, Senri."My uncle says. "Kaname was just telling me how you two were finally planning to go back to school next week."

I nod. He makes it seem as if we'll be going back next month or something, but in reality we'll be going back in three days considering it's only Friday. Kaname and I wanted to spend just a little more time alone with our daughter without the distractions of wedding planning or school work, but we decided that it was best to get back to the academy as soon as possible… Actually Kaname decided that we go back as soon as possible. I personally wasn't in any hurry to get back to drawn out boring lectures and stacks of homework.

"That's good. I was beginning to worry that you would swap your school and work days for a life as a stay at home m-"

"Father." Kaname interjects. Thank goodness, I don't think I would've been able to take it if he had flat out called me a stay out home "mother". I'm still a boy after all despite having had a child.

"No, uncle I-"

"What about modeling? Are you returning to it?" My mother doesn't turn away from the window as she speaks. I wonder what she sees out there.

Kaname takes Mizuki and the bottle from me when I sit down beside him. I'm surprised he hadn't taken her sooner. I'm even more surprised that my mother hasn't tried to get her back yet.

"Akira-san came the other day. She had an idea that I make a "massive comeback" by walking in an upcoming high end fashion show. If I agree to it I'll be show casing the designer's most anticipated creation. I was actually wondering if you and uncle would like to come. I can get you guys tickets.

My mother had been doing better these past few weeks. Hopefully she'll be able to make it. I look to uncle and wonder if he'll be interested as well.

My mother looks back from the window a small almost sad smile. The look on her face is one that I have seen a dozen times, the look of remorse tinged with sadness. I'm ready for the upcoming words. "I'm sorry, dear," That's how most of her sentences started back when I was a child. "But I can't. I don't think I'm quite ready for the cameras yet."

I want to be upset but at the same time I'm able to convince myself that it's best that she not overdo herself. It's best that she realizes her limitations rather than get out in public and make a scene. I force a smile, nod, and tell her that it's okay. I understand. My uncle says that he'll see if he can make it. For some reason I don't hold out hope for his attendance. Sure, there are hints of how things were before, but I can see that not everything is back to normal between us.

After that we make small talk for a little while until my uncle says that he has to leave for some business meeting. Before he can finish his sentence my mother leaves the room and begins to head to the front door. I follow, taking Mizuki with me, leaving my uncle and Kaname alone.

"You have a lovely home, Senri." She says looking around at the random vases and paintings that crowd the foyer. It's not really my taste but oh well. Kaname likes them.

"Thank you, mother. You're welcome to visit anytime."

She looks around for a moment. "Do you and Kaname have a sitter for Mizuki yet?"

I had a feeling she was going to ask that. "Yes. It took a while but we were able to find a suitable nanny to watch after her." She looks saddened but she doesn't say anything. Instead she hugs me tightly.

"I'm glad we could come to an understanding, Jurou-san. I surely hope there are no hard feelings." Kaname and my uncle emerge from the living room.

"Of course not, Kaname-sama." The look on his face, however, says that he's a little sore from whatever conversation they just had. Still they smile and shake hands. I want to ask what he shouldn't have hard feelings about, but just like with their last private conversation months ago, I'm sure no one will tell me.

My mother and uncle say their goodbyes as they walk to their car. We wave them off as they pull away and remain on the front porch for just a little bit longer until Kaname hurries me and Mizuki back inside. The wind has started to blow and he's still worried that we'll get sick. I can't help but laugh at how paranoid he still is about us. I'm almost about to remind him that Mizuki and I can't get sick when I bite it back. Instead I just shake my head a little and walk back inside.

"Papa is so weird, Mizu."

Mizuki coos in agreement…

"Mm, right there. Touch me right there."

It's later in the night when Kaname and I are in our bedroom. He presses his body down atop of mine, pressing me further into the mattress. He grabs at my waist, at my hips, leaving delicious bruises beneath his fingers. Due to Mizuki's constant all night crying Kaname and I haven't been able to have sex since our honeymoon. But tonight, for once since she's been born, Mizuki is sound asleep seemingly without any signs of waking up soon.

I wrap my arms around his neck and pull him down into another kiss. It's wet and heavy and filled with every ounce of desire that we've had building up for the past three days. When I feel Kaname's tongue slip into my mouth my body grows a little bit hotter and my cock a little bit harder. He growls against my mouth as I roll my hips up against his.

"Let's do it while she's still asleep." I whisper in his ear.

Kaname pulls away and retrieves the lubrication from the nightstand drawer. I'm so excited that I can't stand it until-

"Condoms?" I groan. "Come on, Kaname. Can't we just-"

Kaname shakes his head. "I'm sorry, Senri but no. We already have our hands full with Mizuki."

I'm pouting now and can only imagine how childish I must look to him. He laughs and kisses me.

"Let's enjoy this moment while we can."

Kaname slips on the condom with swift speed and wastes no time with teasing as he spreads a good amount of lubrication over his cock. I can't wait to have him inside of my again. It seems like it's been an eternity without him.

When Kaname's done he spreads open my legs. The hungry look in his eyes doesn't help my level of horniness at all.

"Just push it inside of me. I can take the pain. Please just…" God I can't take it anymore. I need him so bad.

Kaname's just about to thrust his big juicy cock inside of me *sigh* when we're interrupted. Mizuki's crying on the other end of the baby monitor. It's both the sound of hunger and- more importantly- the sound of neither of us getting any tonight. Kaname stills, the head of his cock resting against my waiting hole, and frowns. When he withdraws I feel like throwing my own tantrum.

"Why can't we just hire a live-in nanny?" I complain. Kaname stands up from the bed.

"And what would we be without these moments?" He laughs.

I shrug. "Sexually satisfied?"

Kaname chuckles as he removes the condom and puts on his robe.

"I'll be back for you in a moment." He says that, but we both know deep inside that it's going to be yet _another_ long and sexless night.

**More comments:**

**Kids: Ruining sexy time for their parents since… the beginning of time?**

**Also, Akira is the name that I gave Senri and Rima's manager. I don't think she had an actual name in the manga (or at least I couldn't find it) so I just made one up for her. I did the same for the uncle. **


	4. Chapter 4: Kaname

Chapter 4 (Kaname):

Mizuki is crying. I can hear her on the edges of my subconscious, her cries echoing in my head. When I move to get up Senri, who was curled into my back, groans and- still asleep- tries to grab for my arm. I avoid his reach and slip on my bedroom slippers. The late afternoon light shines in faintly from behind the curtains and I make a mental note to buy thicker ones.

I'm still half asleep as I make my way to Mizuki's room. The sharp clear sound of her crying instantly rouses me though as I walk through the door. I pick up my little cherub and drowsily carry her downstairs to the kitchen. There I give her a bottle. I sit at the island counter and try my hardest not to drift back off as Mizuki feeds. Once she is fed and burped I bring her back upstairs and place her in her crib. As I lay her down she yawns and begins squirming against the flowered print bedding. My cherub; she really is so cute. And to think that barely over a month ago she was inside of my precious boy kicking against his womb and bringing me such anxiety that I could hardly sleep.

I can admit now that when I first found out about Senri's pregnancy from our school's nurse, I was a mixture of- well- less than excited emotions. I was shocked because I had no idea that Senri was an omega vampire. I was also worried and- as much as I hate to admit it- I was upset. How could we cope with a child? I wasn't prepared for nor wanted a child at the time and I knew that when he wasn't in school, Senri was primarily focused on his modeling career. None of this changed that I had gotten him pregnant though and that we were going to be parents. Still, for all of this trouble I look down at my daughter and am so happy that she came into our lives. I stay with her and gently stroke her head and rub her stomach until she falls back asleep.

By the time Mizuki's taken care of, it's evening. My alarm clock will be going off soon so I don't bother returning to our bed. Instead I go into the bathroom where I brush my teeth and take a shower. In the shower I let the warm water wash over me as I let my mind wonder. I'm thinking about requested meetings when I hear the sharp ringing of my alarm. A few seconds later I hear a shout followed by a sudden crash. Takuma may have been right when he warned that using an alarm clock to wake Senri wasn't the best idea. I file this new piece of information away in the forefront of my mind along with other things that I need to know about living with my beloved. It's filed between _never_ remove his headphones and always have that pocky candy he loves fully stocked.

When I emerge from the bathroom I find my alarm clock shattered against the wall. Senri is now sprawled out across our bed, his bottom half still on his side while his upper half has shifted over to mine. His face is buried into my pillow as he grumbles into its fabric. I take a moment to admire this rather comical scene before making my way over to him.

"Wake up, my beloved. It's time to get ready." I say to him.

Senri groans but doesn't move. When I touch his shoulder he withdraws from my touch and hides beneath the covers.

"Senri," I scold him. "It's time to get up." He grumbles something under his breath that I don't quite catch. "What was that, Senri?"

"I said go on without me!" groans Senri from beneath the covers. I laugh and tell him that I would never leave him behind to which Senri only grunts.

"Now let's go. Mizuki's caretaker will be here shortly and I want to be ready to go by the time she arrives."

As Senri begrudgingly pulls himself out of bed I go downstairs into my study. There I look over some letters that I meant to read last night but was unable to do. I'm still within my study when the doorbell rings. Upstairs I hear Mizuki begin to cry followed by Senri's hurried footsteps as he goes to her. By the time the housemaid knocks on my door I'm nearly done looking through various invitations and letters of concern.

The maid peeks into the room. "Mrs. Abigail has arrived, Kuran-sama." She informs me.

"Thank you, Emma." I say.

I finish reading the last of a letter before going to meet Mrs. Abigail in the foyer. She is smoothing out the front of her dress and bows when she sees me.

"Good morning, Kuran-sama."

"Hello, Mrs. Abigail. It is good to see you again." I great her with a small smile and nod and guide her up the stairs.

"I heard Mizuki-san's cries. I hope my ringing the doorbell didn't upset her."

"You would have upset her whether you rang or knocked. That is just the way she is right now." I assure her. Mrs. Abigail nods but continues to apologize.

In Mizuki's baby room Senri is tending to our daughter, rocking her in his arms and trying his best to shoosh her. He's more or less dressed with his jacket and cufflinks still undone. I wish I could tell if his hair is brushed or not, but honestly I've never been able to.

"It's time for us to go, Senri." I tell him. Senri looks from me to Mrs. Abigail then back again. He holds my gaze for a moment before sighing and cuddling Mizuki. When he finally hands her over to her caretaker it's done with clear hesitation almost like a child having to hand over his favorite toy.

Mrs. Abigail sees this and assures Senri and me that she will take care of our daughter as if she were her own child. I'm sure that she will. We found that Mrs. Abigail was the most qualified out of dozens of candidates; we conducted multiple interviews, background checks and more to make sure. Yes, as much as I and Senri hate to leave our daughter, Mrs. Abigail is truly the best choice. Regardless of this and despite me telling him that it has already been taken care of, Senri feels the need to go over the checklist for Mizuki with Mrs. Abigail. It is only once he's assured that she understands everything that he allows me to guide him out of the door. On our way out I tease Senri a bit about how responsible he has become.

"If only you were this meticulous when it came to your studies." I say. I tease him but parenthood can truly change people.

"Yeah well, I didn't carry my homework inside of me for months." He shoots back and he climbs into the back of the car. As I get in beside him, he looks back over his shoulder at our caretaker, concern in his eyes.

"Remember, you wanted Mrs. Abigail as well." I remind him.

"I know…" But still he worries.

Unable to keep it to myself any longer and wanting to offer my love some comfort I confess that I have assigned Seiren to secretly watch after our new caretaker. "Just to be cautious." I continue.

Senri smiles. It's small but it warms my heart to see him do so, especially since he smiles in front of no one else. With his mind at ease Senri settles back into his seat and already begins to doze off.

"Senri, open your eyes." He shakes his head and asks for "just a few minutes."

"You shouldn't keep falling asleep like this. It's not good for you." In the past I allowed Senri to have these irregular sleeping patters but only because I read that it could be a symptom of his pregnancy; however, I'm now afraid that it'll affect his academic performance.

Senri once again refuses to get up when I ask him to and lays his head on my shoulder. "Five more minutes." He mutters tiredly.

It is in this moment that I realize two things: 1. That I have become far more absorbed in Senri than I previously realized; and 2. That my beloved has not only noticed this before me, but is more than willing to use this weakness against me. He is quite devious.

"Fine." I give into his demands. "But only until we arrive on academy grounds."

I ignore the faint smile that comes to those lips and look out the window. Since the changing of the seasons the world has become a spectrum of red and green hues. No more is it marked by the deep green and pinks of spring and summer. It is times like this that I wish that I could walk in the sunlight. I would walk hand in hand with my beloved in the faintly chilled air and kiss him beneath the golden and- as Senri calls it- "candy red" trees. It would be a nice change of scenery from the creaking trees and creeping shadows of the night. But those thoughts are just dreams… merely hopes and I shift my thoughts to the autumn and Halloween decorations that fill the town.

When we pass through the Cross Academy gates I wake Senri. He's slow to get up but does so without protest.

Once we arrive at the academy Senri and I make our way to the gate separating the Night Dormitory from the rest of the academy. There we are greeted by our fellow classmates with verbal welcomes and deep bows. I offer a small smile- one that I believe is required of me- and thank them. When I move through them to the front they part before me like waves.

Though I do not look behind me I can feel Senri's uneasiness. Since becoming my partner, he has been subjected to the same idolization as I. Even though this has been going on for months he still seems to be uncomfortable with the special treatment. I'm not so thrilled with it either. It was nice being at home and- with the exception of the sparse house servants- being treated as if I were just another person. There are no honorifics between Senri and I and I miss being treated on equal terms. I certainly cannot wait to return home.

"There you are, Kaname!" Takuma shows his over excitement at my arrival as he hugs me tightly. To be honest his attitude has always been like a breath of fresh air especially in comparison to the skirting around that everyone else does. And it is good to see that my friend has been able to retain his happy demeanor while carrying out his new dorm president duties.

"You act as if we didn't see each other just the other day." I tell him. Takuma shrugs, tells me that does not mean that he can't still miss me, and proceeds to go greet Senri.

While I have certainly missed things about this academy, I am quickly reminded of some of its more… irritating aspects. Before the gates even open I can already hear the thrilled screams and squeals of the Day class students. Once they do, the humans erupt into a series of cheers upon seeing us. They shriek our names and beg for even a glance in their direction as we walk by them to class. Yuki and Kiryu fight vigorously to keep them back as they reach out for a touch.

Today Senri and I are the main focus of this frenzy. These students have no idea about my and my beloved's relationship and know nothing about our absence. Upon seeing that we've returned they grow even more restless and while Yuki losses control of her side Kiryu forces his back with frightening glares and his off putting aura.

Yuki falls back and nearly hits the pavement. I catch her just in time though and brush her off. I don't realize how close Senri is behind me until I hear a faint growl over my shoulder. When I turn around he has already turned to walk away and disappears with Toya into the sea of fans.

I want to catch up with her, but I must go. "Be careful." I tell her and I leave as well.

Aside from the human students, another thing that I find grating are the class lectures. Much of the Night Class knows most- if not all- of the subjects that are taught to us during these times. However, - and like our appearances to the Day Class- it is a necessity. It is because of this sort of obligation that I'm usually able to pay attention during class, yet today I find my mind starting to wonder.

As the teacher drones on about something philosophical I turn my attention to the outside. Beyond the window panes and through the trees I can make out part of the Cross Academy rose garden. By this time of the year there are only a few roses still in bloom adding dots of dark red and yellows to the foliage. To think that a nearly a year ago I was debating about confessing my feelings to Senri. I sit back in my seat and think back with remarkable clarity the day that changed my life forever…

_The day had started out as just an average one. Senri had nearly bitten Takuma's wrist during our class break and had only stopped when he caught sight of me. Due to my past reactions to his antics, Senri paled and instantly withdrew from our friend. Afterwards a fed up Takuma pulled me aside and scolded me for my actions. _

"_You don't have to be so cruel to him, Kaname." Takuma chided me. I told him that I had no idea what he was talking about though it was a partial lie. I knew very well that I was harder on him than the rest of the Night Class, but I didn't think that I had gone too overboard. _

"_You can't be serious. You practically torture him every day!" cried Takuma._

"_Is that so?" _

_Takuma nodded. "Look, Kaname. I think Senri really likes you. He even- and don't tell him that I told you this- but he even mutter your name in his sleep sometimes."_

_This caught my attention. _

"_But he's not going to admit that to you out of nowhere and he's _definitely_ not going to pick up on your feelings for him. No offense, Kaname, but you can be harder to read than assembly instructions." I laughed but Takuma had a point. How could our relationship possibly hope to progress if we continued this… charade? With that reasoning I finally agreed to talk to Senri. Takuma was elated. _

_I spent the rest of the night in my room going over what I was going to say to Senri. The next day, after classes ended, I called my cousin to come with me. He looked back to Toya and Kain who only offered him shrugs and unsure looks. Behind them Takuma beamed with excitement. Before anyone could say or do anything to protect Senri from what they assumed was my wrath, Takuma urged them towards the dorms all the while shouting "good luck" in my direction. _

_Once we were alone Senri began rubbing his hands on his pants leg and tabbing his foot, a nervous habit. I suppose my silence didn't help this nervousness though because once we were left alone I began to grow apprehensive. Without meaning to I began pacing- walking down a stone pathway. Senri followed me, but I believe that it was only because he thought he should rather than he wanted to. By the time we had stopped- by the time I was able to gather my thoughts properly- we were in the rose garden. I hadn't even realized that I was going in its direction._

"_You… wanted to see me?" Senri asked when I remained silent. I turned to face him and the words that I had gone over in my head died on my tongue when I saw how absolutely stunning he was. The faint moonlight illuminated him perfectly in a silver glow and reflected in his eyes like deep endless pools. And in that moment I not only found myself wanting to drown in his gaze and never return, but realized- quite suddenly- that I didn't just cared for him. I had come to love him without even meaning to. _

_I wanted to kiss him then without a single confession. I wanted to take him into my arms and show him that rather than hate him I adored him more so than I had anyone else in this life. But instead of doing this right away I cleared my throat and, still staring into those beautiful blue eyes, confessed, "I've fallen in love with you, Senri." _

_He gawked at me and with each passing second that he stared in disbelief, my anxiety grew. What if Takuma was wrong and Senri didn't feel the same way? I had become terrified though I tried to retain my outward composure. After what seemed like an eternity Senri blushed and stammered that he loved me too. My heart swelled at hearing this and I breathed a sigh of relief. I was elated. _

_With the confession and doubt out of the way I leaned down and kissed him as I'd dreamt of doing for some time. Kissing Senri for the first time was… beyond words. It was everything that I had imagined it to be and more, and I felt as if I could continue to kiss him for years upon years without a single regret. I know that I was moving too fast at the time- just a few days ago I was punishing him for nonsense things- but I couldn't help but be consumed by desire._

_When I released him Senri's face was bright red. His eyes were wide in shock and he stammered uncontrollably. I became confused and asked him what was wrong. Had I moved too fast for his liking? Before I could ask him Senri pushed back against my chest and cried still red, "I'm not dreaming!" _

_I was stunned, then a little amused. He really thought that all of it was his imagination! I laughed which only made him blush brighter. Senri, embarrassed, covered his face with his hands and groaned. I pulled my mortified new lover into my arms and whispered in his ear, "No, you're not dreaming."Senri squirmed and snuggled himself further into my chest. When he at last looked back up at me I saw tears staining his flushed cheeks. My beloved was too sweet. _

_I kissed both of his cheeks and his lips again and told him once more that I loved him. Then I began to kiss him repeatedly until both he and I were certain that it wasn't a dream. _

Ruka taps me on my shoulder bringing me back to the present. Class has ended and our classmates are beginning to leave.

"Are you okay, Kaname-sama?" she asks me. Her eyes are filled with worry. "It's not like you to zone out during class."

I assure her that everything is okay and that I only need time to get used to lectures again. She accepts this and we leave for our next lesson. As opposed to my first class, my next one is with my love. Though he doesn't show it much on the outside I can tell that he is happy to see me too and waits by the classroom door as I draw near. I am just about to greet him when-

"Kaname-sama!" Yuki calls for me as she bounds up the hallway. She runs pass Serni and approaches me with joy.

"Hello, Yuki. How are you?" I greet her and I make a quick gesture for Ruka to go on.

Yuki is breathing heavily but bows despite me having told her not to. "I'm okay, Kaname-sama." She chimes. "I'm sorry that I wasn't able to welcome you back earlier. Everything was just so crazy…er than usual!"

I chuckle. "It's okay, and yes the Day Class can get out of control at times. I'm just glad you're safe." She blushes slightly but this soon wears off.

We take a quick moment then to catch up. I ask her how her classes are going, if she's been getting enough sleep- of course she hasn't- and if she has made any new friends. She answers each of these questions cheerfully and when we're through- when Kiryu arrives to pull her away- I hug her and tell her that I will see her some other time.

Kiryu flashes a series of glares at me from over his shoulder as he and Yuki leave for the Headmaster's office. Once they are gone I return my attention to Senri though his expression isn't the same as it was before. Now he's frowning and I am dumbfounded upon seeing his troubled expression.

"Senri?" I ask. "What's wrong?"

Senri shakes his head though his expression remains the same. "It's nothing." He huffs yet he turns away from me when I try to caress him.

"I just… really don't want to be here." He says.

Before I can question what he means by this he sighs and retreats into the classroom. My beloved retains this odd behavior for the rest of the school day but, despite my best efforts, refuses to tell me why. I soon decide that it is best that I just remain vigilant until this passes.

**Author's comments:**

**I know pocky isn't generally thought of as being candy, but I figured Kaname wouldn't really know that. **


	5. Chapter 5: Senri

Chapter 5 (Senri):

"She really doesn't know when to give up, does she?"

"Who?"

"That Cross girl." I answer.

Takuma gets up from his bed (Kaname's former bed) and walks over to me. He looks out of the window. A distance away is the field where the Day Class students learn to ride horses. Unsurprisingly Cross is failing miserably. She can't even stay on her horse for more than a minute without it throwing her off.

"I highly doubt it." Takuma says. "She's been pretty determined for as long as I can remember."

Huh? …Oh that's right; he has known Cross for a while, just like Kaname…

"Her determination doesn't mean much when she doesn't have anything to show for it." I tell him. From what I've heard she's accomplished little to nothing in her life. How she's made it this far in school is probably only because of her father's position.

"That's pretty harsh. I'm sure she has."

I shrug. "Doesn't seem like it." Cross is able to stay on for five minutes this time before falling into the dirt. "She can't even stay on a horse."

"That's probably because you have the window open." He reaches over and closes it. "You know the horses get agitated when they can sense us."

"Hm." I might remember someone telling me that once…

"So what are we _really_ talking about here, Senri?" Takuma asks me.

"I thought we were talking about Cross' failures." I reply and stroll away from the window arms still folded over my chest.

Behind me Takuma closes the curtains. "Are you sure? Because to me it seems like we're talking about Yuki's and Kaname's closeness; specifically, how close they were yesterday."

I huff, pick up one of his manga books, and plop down in an armchair. This storyline doesn't make much sense to me.

"I haven't even thought about it since it happened." I tell him.

"Really now?" He smirks. "You're telling me that you haven't thought about her since she hugged Kaname in front of you and you stormed into the classroom angry and pouted in the corner?"

"I didn't storm into class. I strutted in. There's a difference… and I didn't pout; I sat in the corner because I wanted to rest against the wall without people bothering me."

Takuma laughs. "Oh okay." But it's obvious that he doesn't believe. I'm not even sure if I believe myself and this bothers me endlessly.

"So shall I dispel the rumors that Senri Shiki is jealous of Yuki Cross then?" I look up from the book.

"People are saying that I'm jealous of her?"

Takuma nods. "Just a few people like Aido. Ruka claims that you have no reason to be while Kain thinks that we should just stay out of your business." He takes his book back and sits on the arm of the chair.

"For once Ruka is right; I have no reason to be jealous of that human. Kaname married me, not her. Besides, jealousy is a meaningless emotion. If Kaname wanted to run off with that girl, me being jealous wouldn't stop him."

Takuma shakes his head. "Tsk tsk tsk, Senri. That's just the stoic in you."

"It's the sensible side of me." I look at the time. "It's almost time for me to go."

"You never told me what your first job back is."

"It's not really a job. Rima and I are just going for a fitting for that upcoming show."

"Oh. Well, you still must be excited to go back."

I stretch and yawn then kneel in the chair. "I am." I say as I pull at Takuma's collar. "Mizuki's crying has been driving me crazy and I've been feeling unbearably stagnant for the longest."

"That makes sense. I know how much you hate loud noises." Takuma says. He tilts his head back. "One more question though. Why do you still need my blood? Don't get me wrong, I like it when you visit me but doesn't Kaname feed you?"

"Not since he's starting giving most of his blood to Mizu."

I sink my fangs into Takuma's throat. At first the blood comes out in short spurts- matching his heartbeat- but as I bite deeper it starts to flow over my tongue. Even though my friend's blood isn't nearly as delicious as Kaname's, I still like drinking it. It's really sweet with a slight tang to it.

"You guys should hire a donor." Takuma suggests. It's a pretty good idea and I make a mental note to talk about this with Kaname as I continue to drink.

Once I'm done feeding I go meet up with Rima. She's in her dorm room with Ruka who, ever since I've gotten with Kaname, has been practically walking on eggshells around me. As usual nowadays she greets me it's with a partial halfhearted bow. She's even acting as if she's afraid to look me in the eyes. Now Ruka and I have never been close friends, but this is ridiculous. In fact, the way everyone has been treating me since Kaname and I got together- with the exception to Takuma, Rima, and sometimes Kain- has been ridiculous. It's not like my status as an aristocrat has changed, but unfortunately not many people seem to understand this. I've come to realize that as long as I'm Kaname's "beloved" most other vampires will, like Ruka, continue to tiptoe around me.

"You ready, Rima?" I ask her.

She slips on her shoes. "Yeah." As is routine with fittings she doesn't have on any makeup. Her hair is pinned back rather than being in her usual pigtails and she doesn't have on any perfume. All she has on is a simple slip over dress, flats, and a coat. All I have on is a sweater (which Kaname "insisted" on), jeans, and a pair of "boat shoes"; nothing that will take too long for me to take off or put back on.

Akira-san is waiting for us outside the dorm. She's on her phone when we approach but quickly hangs up as we climb into the back.

"So are you ready for your first day back, Senri-san?" I almost wish people will stop asking me this question.

"Yes. It's no big deal though. This is practically nothing." I respond.

"That's good to hear. Now today's schedule is pretty light. So far I only have you two scheduled for the fitting."

"So far?" Rima asks.

"Yes. I've been trying to negotiate a gig. No such luck so far but I'm not giving up so easily!"

An actual job sounds good and all, but at the same time I'm already pretty tired. Kaname wouldn't let me go to bed until I finished my homework while Mizuki seemed fussier than usual. Between the two of them I barely got any sleep. Still, if Akira-san can get me another job I'll gladly work through the exhaustion and this small sense of insecurity to make it work. Actually I need to make it work for this fitting too. Even though this is just a simple fitting session there will be people watching and observing. Who's the next big thing? What model has lost their touch? Models sizing up other models. In other words, it's dog eat dog world in the modeling industry and I need to show everyone that despite everything that's happened this past year, I still haven't lost my touch.

The fitting session is held in a large studio office. Upon arriving Rima and I are instantly pulled into the throng. We're told to strip down to our underwear and are handed various outfits to try on.

"Here try this on."

"Turn around. Turn back."

"Strike a pose."

"Okay, now try to walk like you're on the runway."

"What do you think?"

"I like it."

"I don't much care for it. Try another outfit."

"Maybe it's the jacket?"

Designers and assistants twist and turn their mouths as they examine me. I'm handed various clothing articles to try on, sometimes even having to mix and match predetermined garments. Every so often a model will walk by and welcome me back or say how good it is to see me but that's all there is terms of casual conversation.

Once the designers finally find an outfit that they like on me they switch from arguing about which jacket they want me to wear to what kind of accessories. In the end I'm assigned to wear a crimson leather vest with a black form fitting waist coat that will be kept open. I'll have on crimson leather gloves and skinny black pants with a series of thin gold chains hanging from them and a gold design sowed along the bottom. A series of gold earrings (some of them fake piercings) will be hanging from my ears. This will be along with the anticipated fashion piece that the designer herself will personally have me fitted for tomorrow.

I'm relieved once my fitting is finally over and instantly go to take a nap against the wall as Rima finishes hers. I'm woken up shortly after by my manager who cheerfully tells me that she's gotten me a photo shoot gig. It's for a menswear magazine that I've posed for in the past. Apparently the model that was supposed to be in the shoot was a human who got food poisoning at the last minute. Now they're one man short and would be "absolutely thrilled" if I would model for them. I accept the job and on the way there try to get into the mood. I guess it was a good thing I practiced posing in the mirror the other day... it didn't feel as silly as it sounds…

Anyway, um, the photo shoot is thankfully indoors and is being taken in a library. The previous model and I are about the same size and with a few adjustments the garment that he was supposed to wear fits me well enough. In fact, everything is going well enough for my first day back which is a relief… or at least it _was_ going great until- while in the makeup chair- I hear a familiar voice. I'm severely hoping and wishing (and whatever else I need to do) that this isn't who I think it is when the voice draws closer and _his_ face appears in the mirror.

"Do my eyes deceive me or is this really _the_ Senri Shiki whom I see?" He grins and leans against the makeup table.

I sigh. "Hey, Alec."

"It's been a while." He says. "How have you been?"

"I've been fine." I reply though I make it a point not to look in his direction.

"That's good to hear. I heard you got married... Congratulations."

"Thanks."

"You're welcome. I also heard that you had a baby." His eyes rake over my body. "Though I must say that for someone who just had a child, you still look pretty damn good."

This compliment would mean a hell of a lot more if Alec wouldn't say almost anything for a chance to get me in bed. It's for this reason that I only give a halfhearted thank you and continue to remain mostly indifferent during the rest of our conversation.

As I finish up in wardrobe Alec catches me up with what's been going on in the industry: Some designer that I hardly ever paid attention to has retired. Two other models beside me have recently had babies. Another model whom I don't really like has switched to acting, etc etc. Most of these things I've already learned from Rima though I don't bother telling him this. After I'm ready Alec and I head to the set where the photographer directs us on where he'd like us.

"Alright, I want you two settled around the reading desk." I think the photographer says. I can hardly understand him due to his thick accent. "Alec, I want you sitting down with a book. Pretend you are reading intently. Senri, I want you perched on the edge of the desk beside Alec. Flirt with him." Oh boy, Alec just _loves_ hearing that. The joy is written plain on his face and he flashes me a flirtatious look. Jeez.

With our instructions having been given, the fashion shoot begins. Alec picks up a book from the stack already placed on the desk and sits in the wooden chair. As he flips to a random page I sit on the edge of the wood and start playing with his hair.

"Good, good." The photographer says. "Now look alluring, Senri. Yes, like that. You are lithe seductive boy- like boy nymph- trying to seduce older student."

I don't realize how much I've missed being in front of the camera until it begins to snap pictures. Flashes of dazzling lights as the photographer snaps his pictures. I try not to shun away from it as my nocturnal eyes burn. Alec keeps a straight face as he continues to pretend reading the book. Meanwhile I comb my fingers through his blond hair and trail my hand lightly down his cheek. I touch his shoulder and play with the collar of his shirt. Every touch and every caress is just for the shoot though; or at least for me it is. I'm not quite so sure if it's the same for Alec. I realize this in the midst of the shoot when he looks at me with this almost yearning look. I'm really anxious for this to be over now.

On top of not wanting to risk Alec getting the wrong idea, I'm getting _so_ exhausted. The photoshoot seems to take forever though between the costume changes and such. Another male model ends up arriving late for the last session so Alec and I have to wait for him to get through with hair and wardrobe in order to finish the rest of the shoot.

"I see you haven't lost your touch." Alec says as we wait.

"You seem shocked."

Alec shakes his head. "Relieved." He looks me up and down again. "You know; I wasn't lying when I said you still look good."

"…I know." I say just as the third model comes out.

Once everything is done and over with it's almost evening. Gates open at 5 p.m. Rima and I will hardly have enough time to get ready for classes before its time to join the others. It's needless to say that I will not be getting that nap.

Akira-san rushes us to Cross Academy after the shoot and tells me that she will e-mail me a copy of today's photos. In the Moon Dormitory I rush to Kaname's old dorm room/Takuma's new dorm room to get ready. I'm slowly making it a habit to leave things here like extra school uniforms and hastily get dressed with a little help from Takuma to make things go faster. As he helps me with my cufflinks I remember something and start looking around the room for my phone. I try not the think about all the- um- things that Kaname and I have done on this very bed as I dig through the decorative pillows.

"I need to call Kaname and let him know not to wait on me."

"There's no need for that." Takuma says. "Kaname's already here."

I look back at Takuma. "He is?" I figured he would have at least called me.

"Mmhm. He arrived about an hour or so ago. Yuki fell ill shortly after you left and Kaname rushed over as soon as the Headmaster alerted him." I try my hardest to ignore this strange feeling swelling up inside of me and refuse to believe that it's jealousy. "I think he's at the Headmaster's house right now trying to tend to her." Takuma picks up his briefcase book bag and heads for the door. "Anyway, we should go ahead and head down. Don't want to be late!"

That human really doesn't know when to give up...


	6. Chapter 6: Kaname

Chapter 6 (Kaname):

"It seems her fever is starting to go down." Kaien says as he takes her temperature.

"But she's still ill." I remind him and I ring out a cold cloth to place on her forehead.

Yuki whimpers and twists and turns, but for the most part it seems the cloth is helping. Still, it is only temporary comfort. For any hope that she'll get better we will need a doctor.

"I called for one earlier but she won't be able to come until tomorrow morning." Kaien informs me.

I ask that he calls me the moment she arrives.

"Are you sure?"

I glance back at him. Why wouldn't I be?

"Well, you have a family of your own now, Kaname. Don't you think you should be with them?" He says. "I can just relay the diagnosis after all."

But that won't do. I want- no, need to be by Yuki's side. It will drive me mad with worry otherwise.

"What about Senri? Are you so certain that he will be able to care for Mizu-chan by himself?"

"I'll only be here long enough to hear what the doctor has to say, then I will leave and return home. Senri should be able to tend to Mizuki for that long."

"I see…" There is a question on the tip of his tongue now. It is plain to see and almost just as easy to guess.

"His depression has gotten better." I assure him. "I'll admit that it was difficult in the beginning with his sudden detachment from the baby, but the therapy has truly helped."

Kaien nods. "Okay. If you say so." He then sighs and pulls his shawl tighter around him. He gazes down at Yuki. "I hope this isn't too serious." He worries. I am desperately wishing the same thing and it pains me that I cannot do more to help her. Even with my powers of healing, I can only offer small reliefs to her symptoms. Is this how humans feel all the time? So weak and vulnerable?

The beeping of my cellphone interrupts my thoughts. It is a text message from Takuma. It seems a group of Night Class students have taken advantage of my absence to "poke the bear" so to speak. Takuma is trying his best to break up the commotion, but it will only be a matter of time before Kiryu- nearly rabid without Yuki to calm him- snaps and makes the situation worse.

"You should go, Kaname." Kaien advises.

"Yes, it seems the Night Class is back to being unable to function without me." How they managed to last while I was away is well beyond me. Regardless, it seems things are back to normal now. How tedious.

I kneel back down at Yuki's bedside. "I'm afraid that I have to go now." I tell her gently. She moans and opens her eyes. They water with tears and the light that has always shined so brightly in them has dimmed. I pet her hair. "The Night Class needs me, but I'll be back tomorrow morning. I promise."

She offers a weakened smile and says so sweetly. "Goodnight, Kaname-sama." Just like when she was little.

"Goodnight, Yuki." And I kiss her forehead. It is still burning.

I turn to Kaien. "If anything changes with her condition…"

"You will be the first to know." He continues.

"Thank you."

With one final look at my dear Yuki, I leave and travel to the main building.

I truly do not want to leave- I believe this much is clear-, but I am afraid of the consequences otherwise. Kiryu could end up hurt or killed by the Night Class, and if that were to happen I fear that Yuki would blame and hate me for it. If she did I know that I wouldn't be able to stand it, and so with that fear in mind I force myself to hurry to the classrooms and hope and pray that her condition doesn't worsen while I am away.

Within a few minutes of leaving the headmaster's home I arrive at the main building. Upon my arrival I find a fight already underway. Kiryu has drawn his gun and points it at an aristocrat who bares her fangs. Takuma is trying to defuse the situation but despite his attempts the fight is not postponed for much longer.

The young student lunges at Kiryu, but before she can reach him or he pull the trigger I intervene. With great speed I step between them and with one hand grabbing the woman all the while the other knocks away Kiryu's weapon. The gun goes off and instantly I feel the sting of the bullet's magic as it passes over my shoulder. The sound of the gunshot rings in my ears.

"Kuran-sama!" The woman gasps. She thrashes in my grasp but I hold her tightly by the throat.

"For years I have dreamed of peace between us and the humans, and it was for this purpose that I created the Night Class. Yet, for all my hard work I am greeted with this shameless behavior?" It was a rhetorical question, but one of the students speak up.

"K-Kuran-sama," He stammers. I glance to him. "This isn't what you think. We were just… we were only joking around. We didn't mean to-"

"Is that what you call this?" I frown but release the girl. She falls to her knees and gasps for air. "I will not see my goals shattered simply because you felt the need to 'joke around'." I pause and look around at their faces; at the faces of those that I have placed my hopes upon and declare, "Those who first prompted this incident shall be punished. Until that time, I want everyone to return to their classes. _Now_."

With a bow they scatter to the shadows. I turn to Kiryu and tell him, with as much repose as possible, that he is no longer needed.

He sneers. "I'm not one of your fucking dogs, Kuran." He snarls but I shake my head.

"I was simply allowing you get back to your life. I wasn't trying to be rude." I state but he is still angry. In fact, he is always angry which is why I sometimes wonder if he can even muster a smile.

It's at this moment that Takuma soon steps in and convinces Kiryu to return to patrol. At first it doesn't seem likely, but after a moment of silent glaring he finally holsters his weapon.

"Keep your people out of my sight." He growls then turns and leaves taking that uneasy aura with him. It's only once he's gone that I become aware of another familiar presence. It is Senri's. I'd know it anywhere.

I look around and soon notice my love standing further down the hallway. The pale silver light pouring in from the window makes him easily captivating and the moment I see him I smile. I approach him.

"Good afternoon." I greet and embrace him. I kiss his mouth and realize, quite suddenly, that this is the first time that I have seen or spoken to him all day. How senseless of me.

"How was your day?" I ask him. He doesn't answer right away, but tells me that it was fine.

"How was yours?"

"Let's just say that it could have gone better." I reply. "Mizuki kept me up for most of the night, but calmed down after a few hours."

"Oh."

"Yes, I was only able to get about two hours of sleep before the headmaster called me. Yuki fell ill during class."

"…Oh."

I lean back and look down at him. "Is something wrong?" I don't know why I ask though. Senri has never been one to voice his troubles.

His gaze flickers down for just a second. It's a tell that he is about to lie.

"No. It's nothing." He tells me.

"Are you sure?"

He nods. "I'm just tired."

"From trying on clothes?"

He shoots me a quick glare but sighs. Sometimes I feel like there's a wall between us. We're not communicating as well as we should; I'm aware of it. At the same time, however, I'm not entirely sure how to remedy this.

"Well, we only have one more class left, dear." I brush aside a lock of hair from his face. "So for the sake of your grades, please stay awake."

I'm leaning down to plant a kiss on his cheek when I hear him mutter, "My grades are fine."

Once again I pull away. "C's aren't fine, Senri. You can do better."

"I **am** doing better. I'm going back to work," He claims.

I didn't mean for what I said to offend him, but it's clear that I have. I quickly back trace and apologize.

"I'm sorry, Senri. I'm only worrying over you like you know I do at times." I nuzzle his hair. "I didn't mean to upset you."

He sighs heavily, but says that it's fine. Senri then turns his attention to my shoulder.

"Does it hurt?" He asks me. At first I don't realize what he means. Once I do I smile and tease him.

"If it does, will you kiss it to make it feel better?" I smirk.

"If I did, it wouldn't matter." He says. "I'm not the one with the healing powers." My dear boy; he isn't very good at flirting.

"No, that's not what I-"

"Class is about to start, you two!" Takuma chimes in down the hall. I take Senri's hand and guide him into the classroom, trying to forget what may have been our first potential argument.

During lecture Senri nods off more than twice. I preoccupy myself during the class with both trying to keep him up, and wondering how Yuki is fairing. Sometimes my mind drifts off to the radiating pain in my shoulder and arm, but despite its ache it is hardly bothersome. I have felt pain far worse in a past life…

* * *

_**Author's comments:**_

Towards the beginning of the chapter Kaname mentions depression in regards to Senri. When he says this, he- I am referring to postpartum depression which some mothers (or in this case baby bearing males) suffer from shortly after having a baby. Some of the symptoms of PPD include insomnia (which is one reason why Kaname is so worried about Senri still being so tired), the inability to bond with the baby, the feeling that they won't be able to handle being a parent, etc. So, Senri developed this condition very shortly after Mizuki was born, but is undergoing therapy to lessen his symptoms. So… yeah… that's what he meant and that's why the headmaster was worried about Senri being left alone with the baby.

Also, I am not making light of postpartum depression by adding it into the story so please don't think so.


	7. Chapter 7: Flashback

_**Author's comments: **_

The person who requested this story has asked that I add some flashback chapters, so I am going to do just that. I have, however, decided that I'm going to do these chapters in 3rd person rather than in Senri's or Kaname's point of views. These flashback chapters are going to be set pre Love after Letters and will be set during Dear Mother. I think that will give the overall story/Dear Mother story more depth…. I hope. Let me know what you think.

* * *

"I heard that Odell and Ai are a couple now." A vampire said. It was lazy night at the Moon Dormitory and a few members of the Night Class were preoccupying themselves with gossip in the dorm foyer.

"Are you serious?" Another replied. "I wouldn't have ever thought _that_ would happen."

The first vampire shrugged. "Well it is. Saw them making out in the stairwell yesterday."

"Jeez. Such an unlikely couple." A girl said. The vampire puckered her lips and looked about the room. "Speaking of unlikely couples," she began, "I hear you and Kuran-sama are going out, Shiki."

The group of vampires turned their attention to the lethargic vampire seated on the couch. He looked up from the book held in Takuma's hands.

"Yeah, I guess." He said. He flipped to the next page.

"How'd you pull that off?" A red haired boy asked.

Senri shrugged "I dunno." He replied. "Does it matter?" And he flipped the page again.

"Hey, I wasn't done yet." Takuma protested.

"Oh… Nothing interesting happens anyway." And the boy continued reading.

Takuma frowned and sighed, but did nothing else.

"I don't think it really matters how it happened." He joined in on the conversation, "I just think it's great that Senri and Kaname are together now."

"You mean _for_ now." One vampire muttered.

Senri glanced up in the young man's direction as well as the others.

Realizing that everyone had heard him the vampire cleared his throat and rubbed the back of his neck. "I mean, everyone knows that Kuran-sama has eyes for that disciplinary girl." He stated. He looked around the room for support.

"That's not true, Walton." Takuma objected. "Yuki and Kaname are just friends."

One girl chuckled and rolled her eyes. "Yeah. Sure. _Friends_." And a few others grinned. Senri said nothing.

"If they're really just friends, then why are they always flirting?" someone questioned Takuma.

Someone else laughed. "It's actually a bit pathetic how that human pursues him."

Takuma frowned. "That's unnecessary, don't you think? Yuki is a kind girl and she's just being friendly to someone who's always been there for her."

A vampire flashed the blond a questioning gaze. "Are you sure that's all it is, Takuma? She _is_ always-"

"Excuse me?"

The conversation was cut short as a familiar voice cut through it like a knife. The vampires looked up towards the large double doors and at the small human that stood in its frame.

Yuki Cross slipped into the foyer, nervous as all eyed fell on her.

"Um, I'm sorry to interrupt, but is Kaname-sama here? I need to talk to him." The girl said as she took a few steps inside the room. She shut the door behind her, but remained standing beside it.

Senri looked at her over his shoulder. A few of the students, the recent conversation still on their minds, glanced back and forth between him and the girl. Takuma was the first to break the silence as he greeted her with bright smile.

"Hello, Yuki." He chirped. "Kaname is here, but-"

"He's in his room, but he doesn't want to be bothered." Senri cut his friend short, surprising the blond in the process. Even Yuki seemed caught off guard by the sudden interruption.

"Oh! Um- well, can you tell him that I stopped by?" She looked back and forth between the two friends unsure of who to address. Senri turned back around without response while Takuma flashed another smile.

"Of course I will, Yuki." he assured the girl. Yuki nodded in thanks then turned to leave the dorm. Her hand was on the door handle when she stopped and turned back around.

"Um, Senri Shiki-san?" She said. Senri glanced back at her. "I heard that you and Kaname-sama have started dating?"

Whether or not it was a rhetorical question, Senri didn't reply. He continued to stare at her from beneath long dark lashes.

"Well, I just wanted to say… please treat Kaname-sama well!" The girl begged. She fumbled with her fingers. "I mean, I'm sure you will and all but still, he's a very kind person and- and I don't know much about you, but he deserves to be happy so um… yeah…" Yuki glanced around at the cold and suspicious stares of the vampires. "Well, that's all I wanted to say. I'd better go now. Um, goodbye!" And she hurried out of the dorm, slamming the door shut behind her.

Once she was gone Takuma turned back to the others, a smile wide on his face.

"See, everyone? I told you she was nice. Don't you think so, Senri… Senri?"

The boy didn't answer though as he stared down in thought. Once he finally did say something it was only to tell Takuma that he had become tired. "Hold still so I can sleep on you." The boy said, and he leaned his head on the young man's arm, the girl's words lingering in his head.

The rest of the students remained quiet for a moment though their gossip soon resumed.

"Anyway, did you hear about-" And the night continued on like any other.

_**More comments:**_

First off let me apologize for taking so long with this chapter. I know some of you may be thinking "Why did it take her so long to write this thing? It's pretty damn short!" Well, actually I typed a version of this chapter a while ago while procrastinating on an essay (which you should never do) and thought that I had posted it after I was done. Recently, however, I realized that I never actually posted it. I was just about to do that when, while proofreading it a final time, I suddenly decided "This is totally not the direction I want to go in for this story." So I scraped six and a half pages worth of chapter seven and started over.

I don't know, I just feel like in these last few chapters Yuki has been portrayed as this potential man stealer (or at least that's how I think I've made her out to be), and, thinking back to her personality, I don't think she would have consciously done something like purposely try and steal someone's man. I think she'd be the type of person to hope that Kaname is happy no matter who he ended up with. But because she doesn't know much about Senri (I mean come on they're cousins yet they don't acknowledge or even speak to each other at all in the manga) she'd become worried about Kaname's wellbeing and end up asking Senri to be nice to him.


	8. Chapter 8: Senri

"Senri… Senri!"

I look up.

"What?"

"Did you hear me?" Akira-san asks. "I said; an interviewer from _Sujets__.com _is here for an exclusive."

"Oh, um, right." I say. I think I remember her mentioning an interview on the way here... A lot of people have been asking for them lately, but I've been so busy with photo shoots, and getting ready for this fashion show, and dealing with Kaname and the baby that I haven't really been able to give one. Well, actually I gave one a few days ago, but that was over the phone. This will be my first in person one in a while.

Akira-san waves the interviewer over. As they make their way through the crowd my manager leans in close to speak to me. "Are you okay, Senri?" she asks me.

"Yeah." I answer. I would nod my head, but it's being pulled this way and that by the hairstylists. My neck is actually starting to hurt a little.

"Are you sure? You seem out of it."

"I said I'm fine." I groan.

Akira-san frowns. "Look, I know a lot has happened in the past year, but I _really_ need you to pull yourself together." She tells me. "Just forget about whatever is going on with your family and with school and with everything else and just _focus_. This is your big comeback. There are dozens of distinguished designers and editors and photographers out there so you need to pull through. Okay?"

"…Okay." I say. A second later and the interviewer is here, smiling and eager. Her camera is already recording.

"I'm here with supermodel, Senri Shiki, who is _finally_ back after nearly a _year_ of downtime." the woman says. "As you can see here, he is still getting ready for the big fashion show- which I am really excited for- and he has agreed- you can see him in the mirror here-," I give a small wave to the camera through the glass, "To answer a few questions."

The camera is turned to me.

"First off let me say thank you for agreeing to meet with me. I know you don't really like interviews that much, so this means a lot." She begins though she shouldn't really be thanking me. My manager is the one who agreed to this after all. Still, I tell her that she's welcome.

"So, can you tell us what it's like to be back in _all of this_ after _all_ _this time_?" She asks as she motions around the room.

I sigh. "Um, kind of overwhelming I guess." I tell the woman. "There's a lot of stuff going on and I'm not really used to it yet, but I'm sure I'll get over it soon."

The woman laughs. "I'm sure you will." Then, "Are you excited to be back?"

I open my mouth to speak, but she interrupts me. "I mean, I heard you were having problems with your mother, but are you happy to be working again?"

'Family concerns' is what we told the human press to explain why I was taking such a long break. However, because of my mother's known mental troubles people have automatically assumed that my break is because of her. In truth, 'family concerns' is just code for 'a boy got pregnant and had a baby', but that would kind of be hard to explain.

"I am. I missed working. Being at home can be annoying and I enjoy modeling." I realize my mistake the moment I say it. To the human world, who is none the wiser, I just said being at home taking care of my ill mother is annoying. To the vampire world, I just said that being at home with my pureblood partner and our child is annoying. Either way I just said the wrong thing. The interviewer notices it too, but doesn't say anything about it.

"Do you have any more shows lined up yet?" she continues.

"You should ask my manager that. She always seems to be negotiating new jobs out of nowhere."

"Well, that could be good. More jobs mean more publicity and more money, right?"

"I guess..."

"Well, other than fashion shows, do you have anything else lined up? Or are you hoping or expecting to do anything more?" The woman asks. "I remember, before you went on your break, that you were thinking about auditioning for a movie role. Are you going to try to get into acting again?"

Hm… that's a good question. I remember the same thing; thinking about stepping into acting. Other than my manager, I never told anyone about this decision because, around that time, I found out that I was pregnant. In the end I decided not to go for the role. I didn't want to bother with the hassle of morning sickness and stuff like that while doing my first acting gig. That just wouldn't have been a good way to start off that side of my career.

"I don't know." I answer. "To tell you the truth, I haven't thought about it in a while. I guess if someone contacts me about an acting job I might consider it, but I don't think so otherwise… At least not for a while anyway. I still have to get back into the swing of modeling." And raise a baby, but I don't mention that.

"Oh right. I'm sure that now that you're back you'll be busier than ever!"

"I'm sure I will be." But not for the reasons you think. "But it shouldn't be a problem. I used to have to do three shows in one night; some in a different country."

"That must have been tiring!"

"It was."

"Speaking of different countries, though, are you going to-"

The interview goes on for a little while longer, with me trying to answer the woman in between gusts of heat from the blow dryers and over the sound of the stage manager calling out directions. The interview is cut short once it's time for me to get dressed. Once that happens the interviewer wishes me good luck and tells me that she is excited for me to be back. I force a smile and wave goodbye to the camera, but only because I think that's what I should do, and hurry off to go throw on my garment.

Backstage at a fashion show can get chaotic at times. There are models running around everywhere trying to get their clothes on and assistants trying in a hurry to add finishing touches here and there. In the midst of all this and as an assistant helps me put on my jewelry I happen to look up and notice a bat. It doesn't seem lost or confused or anything like that. In fact it's just sitting there, hanging from a thin pipe that runs above as if it belongs there. And call me crazy, but I actually think it's watching me. I don't know why, but I just have this feeling that it is.

_So strange… _I think and I lean this way and that to test my theory. I know I probably look ridiculous doing this, but the bat seems to be following my movements. _Do bats normally do weird stuff like this? _I wonder, but I honestly don't know that much about bats. Ironic for a vampire, huh?

"Hey, Senri!" I jump and look away from the animal. A passing model tells me that the designer would like to say a few words to us before the show starts. I tell her that I'll be there in a minute and turn my attention back to the bat. When I look back up though I see that it's gone. But did I imagine it? I guess that would make sense. I mean, what would a bat be doing in here anyway?Whether there was a bat there or not I guess it doesn't matter now. There are more important things to worry about right now, like if I've really lost enough weight. Before heading off to listen to the designer I examine myself in a mirror.

_Do I really look okay?_ I ask myself.

After having Mizuki I worked out constantly, but for some reason I can't help but feel like it wasn't enough. I must have lost enough weight though! Otherwise I wouldn't have gotten this job. Still, the doubt lingers and it's driving me crazy.

As I continue to examine myself in the mirror someone calls for me to come on. I give myself a final look over before following. As the designer, Laura, gives her speech I try to calm my remaining nerves and by the time the show begins I think that I may actually be okay.

_It's show time._

I watch as two other models walk out before knowing that any second now it'll be me. When it's finally my turn I take one final deep breath and walk out.

The moment my foot hits the runway the butterflies have completely vanished and all there is are the flashing lights, the upbeat music, and the knowledge that all eyes are on me, just as mesmerized as they've always been. My fears instantly melt away and seem a little stupid now. I mean, this is my element. This is what I've been doing since I was a kid and what I'm really good at. Sure, Mizuki kept me stagnant for a little while, but I feel like this- modeling- is what I was born to do. So naturally I take to the runway and strike a pose as if it's second nature. The instant I do the photographers go crazy. Their camera flashes kind of sting my eyes, but I'm _back_. I'm walking the runway again, and with the same ferocity that I used to. I feel like I'm on cloud nine now; like I can do anything, and that nothing can bring me down. Not even- Wait… where's Kaname? I see the seat reserved for him on my way back, and notice that it's empty. Rima and Takuma are in their seats, but not my partner.

_He said he'd be here so where is he? _I wonder.

Back at the start of the runway and as I strike another pose I glance around in search of him. It's just a quick look around, but I still don't see Kaname anywhere. I strut offstage and grab my phone. No missed calls. There's one text message but it's nothing important.

_Where is he?_

I send him a message then return to the show. I try not to let my worries get a hold of me during it, but it's a little hard. Did he even remember that the show was tonight? He must have because I've mentioned it in passing a dozen or so times. I even had to go to dress rehearsal yesterday to which he told me good luck. So why isn't he here?

I try not to think about or get discouraged it, but as the fashion show progresses and as I continue to see that empty chair, I start to believe that he's with _her _again. Now I'm annoyed. I don't realize that I'm clicking my teeth until another model asks me what's wrong. Once she does I stop and try to snap myself out of my head. It doesn't really work.

Why does he keep going back to her? We're married. We even have a kid together. I mean, I know neither of those things were really planned, and that he possibly only married me because I was pregnant but…we... UGH!

_Come on, Senri, get yourself together. Remember what Akira-san told you._

"Senri, you're back on!" The stage manager calls.

I take a few deep breaths and head back out on stage, avoiding that tauntingly empty seat. I don't need that distraction. This is supposed to be my time to shine, so I step out on stage and do just that. As I step out in Laura's star garment, everyone leans in just a little bit closer to get a better look at it. Their eyes light up and even other designers look intrigued. I'm flaunting it perfectly and I don't even miss a beat. Once it's all over with though I'm a mixture of relief, happiness, sadness, and anger. Never mind the after party. I want to know why Kaname didn't show. I mean, my mother I understand, but Kaname?

I soon find Rima and Takuma after the show and approach them.

"Senri, that was great!" Takuma cries. Rima soberly agrees.

"You really got back into the hang of it quickly, huh?" he continues. I just nod, not really in the mood for celebrating.

"Where's Kaname?" I ask Takuma.

He instantly frowns and rubs the back of his neck.

"Um, I… don't really know, Senri." He says. "He wasn't in his seat, but that doesn't mean that he wasn't somewhere else watching." Takuma smiles, but it's not his usual carefree smile. Instead it looks more worried than anything.

I sigh and glance at Rima. She shrugs. "I haven't seen him." She says.

I frown and glance down at the floor.

"_But_ like I said, that doesn't mean he wasn't standing someplace else." Takuma jumps in, but I'm not buying it. Kaname didn't show. Instead he's probably still with Cross who I heard "took a turn for the worse" earlier this afternoon. I guess with that going on, I shouldn't be surprised that he didn't show up.

"Hey, how about we go get something to eat!" Takuma suggested. "We can stop by that desert shop you like, Senri-kun." But I don't really feel like it. Besides, if Kaname is really with Cross then that means the nanny is still with Mizuki and I don't want to make her work too late. I tell Takuma this.

Takuma frowns at first, and then gives a sympathetic smile. "Okay. Well, do you want me to give you a lift home?" He asks.

I shake my head. "Akira-san will take me home." I tell him.

"Okay…"and Takuma hugs me. "I'll see you tomorrow." He says as he lets me go. I watch as he and Rima leave to head back to the dorms.

Shortly after they leave I'm approached by Alec. He wasn't in the fashion show so I guess he was just here to watch.

"You were great out there." He says, a grin on his face.

"Um, thanks…" I sigh.

His smile fades. "Are you alright?" he asks me.

I shrug then get a sudden thought. "Have you been here during the whole show?" I ask Alec. He nods. "Did you see Kaname at any point?"

"He wasn't in his seat?"

"No. That's why I'm asking if you've seen him anywhere." _Obviously._

Alec thinks for a minute then shakes his head. "Can't say I did." He answers and I think I feel my heart kind of drop. I check my phone and see that he still hasn't contacted me. Is Cross really more important though?

"Hey, Senri?" I look up to see that Alec has moved in close to me. He's too close, really. He's looming over me now and it's actually a bit uncomfortable. "You know, if I were him I'd _never_ abandon you." He says this so dramatically and reaches up to caress a lock of my hair. I move back though, not interested in him touching any part of me. In fact, I haven't been interested in Alec for a while, that is, if I ever genuinely was.

"Kaname hasn't abandoned me, Alec. He's just busy." I tell myself- I mean him. I glance down at my phone and remember the time. "I've got to go. I'll see you later." I say and I turn and to leave; or at least I try to leave. Alec's grip on my arm stops me short though. I turn around just as he leans in, his noise brushing against my cheek as he talks.

"He doesn't deserve you," He whispers, his voice tickling my ear and sending a chill up my spine. "He never has. Has he?"

Caught off guard by Alec's words I hesitate, but then quickly jerk away from him. A sudden relinquish of my arm causes me to stumble backwards, though I'm able to catch myself before falling.

"You don't know him." I claim and I rub the spot where he had grabbed me.

"I know enough. I hear about him a lot actually, especially ever since you two got together," He tells me. "I know that he's a 'legendary' pureblood, and that he's an orphan-"

"Everyone in our world knows that."

"I know that he practically runs your school," Alec continues, not missing a beat, "_And_ I know that he has a certain soft spot for a sweet little thing named Yuki, apparently enough to miss your big day."

I jump at the sound of her name and look up at Alec, stunned. "How do you-"

"I have my ways," Alec says. He reaches out to touch me again only this time I don't withdraw from him. His hands are warm as they brush along my cheek, drifting down to my throat. "You know, I've seen this before, Senri. One person meets another, and one of those people are _just so smooth and suave_ that he mesmerizes the other like _that_." He snaps his fingers then, making a small lump catch in the middle of my throat. "He pretends to be interested- pretends to love you- when in truth he's just using you to either get what he really wants, or until he can get his hands on what he really desires. To him, you're just a little toy; like something to chew on and play with until he can get his hands on that human girl."

I want to say something, but I choke up. I mean I just... I just freeze. I don't know why. I just do. When I'm finally able to speak I remind Alec of Kaname's and my baby, and the fact that we got married.

He just laughs. "Oh yeah, the shotgun wedding, because I'm _so_ sure that he meant to knock you up. Probably didn't even know that you _could_ get pregnant until it happened. And as for marrying you, I'm assuming that it was just for the sake of the public. I mean, sure, purebloods are revered by all no matter what, but the guy's got to keep up face. Can't be thrown into the same category as your dad, right?"

At the mention of my father, I break out of Alec's trance and pull away, shaking my head violently enough to give myself a headache.

"That's enough, Alec!" I cry. Damn, my voice sounds pitiful even to my own ears. It's no wonder that smug smile is still on his face like he's won some stupid prize.

With that look still on his face and that gleam in his eyes Alec holds up his hands as if in surrender. "Okay, I'm sorry," He says. "I guess I went a little overboard there."

"You _guess_?" I snap and clench my hands at my sides, nails digging into the palms.

"I'm really sorry, Senri, but I'm just worried about you. I don't want to see you get hurt, especially with the position that you're in, having a kid and all. I'm just trying to look out for you. You know, like I used to."

I frown. "I can look out for myself. Besides, Kaname loves me and him not showing up today doesn't prove anything to the contrary. Mizuki might have been an accident, but that doesn't mean anything either, alright?"

"Do you really believe that?" Alec asks, a strange sort of seriousness settling over him.

"...I do," I reply, "Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go." And I turn and leave ignoring whatever else Alec has to say.

* * *

**Author's comments: **

**EDIT:** I changed what Alec says to Senri after the fashion show in order to account for Senri's behavior in the next chapter and also to set more of a dramatic scene.

In the previous version of this Senri still asks Alec if he's seen Kaname and everything, as well as Alec leaning in close to Senri. He didn't grab or touch Senri except for brushing a piece of hair from Senri's face. That and in the old version instead of planting all this doubt in Senri's head, Alec only proclaims, as Senri walks away, that Kaname could never love Senri as much as he (Alec) loves him. Sooo, yeah that's about it.

Also thank you to those who went back from chapter 9 just to read what edits I made to this chapter. To me it shows that you really care about this story and want to know how things are now progressing.


	9. Chapter 9 Part 1: Kaname

**Author's comments: **

This chapter is pretty long so I'm going to be uploading it in sections. This is part 1 of 3, and the second part will be added tomorrow after I finish proofreading/editing it. I also changed what Alec said to Senri in the end of the last chapter, that way it would fit in and explain why Senri is acting so weird towards Kaname (you know, aside from being angry that his partner missed his big comeback show.) Please let me know what you think about the edits as well as this part. Comments short and long really help.

* * *

"-I know she means a lot to you, and I know that she's sick, but… but you could have at least called. You could have at least _warned_ me that you wouldn't be there. I mean, I texted you over and _over_ again but you couldn't even-" His voice begins to crack, and with it my heart. Just hearing him on the verge of tears is enough to make it ache.

"Look," The voice mail continues, "I know you like her- everyone knows that you like her- and why wouldn't you? She's sweet, and she's always so damn cheerful and carefree…" Senri chokes on his words. "And I know I'm not like her. I know that I'm not bubbly like her or as talkative or as open as her… I know that I don't smile like her or anything like that, but I- I had your child, Kaname. I carried your daughter! I put _everything_, my career and sometimes even my relationship with my friends, on hold for you. I married you for fuck's sake. I changed my whole life for you… I… fell in love with you, and you can't even come to my big show?" Senri stops and takes a few deep breaths. "You know what? Never mind. It's just a fashion show, right? I mean, it doesn't matter. They'll be others." His voice is interrupted by Mizuki's crying in the background. He groans, and I can imagine him rubbing his forehead. "I have to go. Take care of Cross." And the phone hangs up.

"_End of message."_ The voicemail announces. "_Next new message. Your message from _'Takuma'_ sent Today at 9:51 pm."_

"Hey, Kaname, listen, I know that you have your hands full with taking care of Yuki-chan and everything, but I think you should get home. Senri noticed that you weren't at the fashion show, and I tried to cover for you, but he was still upset and honestly, I don't blame him. You know that fashion show meant a lot to him, and that modeling means a lot to him _period_. I know that Yuki means a lot to you too, but you have to prioritize, Kaname. I'm sure the Headmaster and Kiryu-kun were there for her anyway. She'll be fine, but right now Senri needs to know that you really care about him. He loves you, and he's honestly put his modeling career on hold for you and Mizuki long enough. Tonight was his night, and you need to make this right… like I know you will, so just call me back when you get this message or at least text me and let me know how things with Senri end up going. I'll talk to you later. Bye."

"_End of message."_

…

I sigh and lean back in my seat. I knew that Senri would be angry with me for missing his show. I even expected some sort of lecture from my old friend, but neither of these things to such an extent. Now I am not entirely sure how I should proceed with things. I don't believe an apology, a few kisses, and dinner will be enough to earn his forgiveness. Still, I need to do something.

"One more time around the neighborhood, sir?" My driver asks, interrupting my thoughts.

I sit back up and glance out the window, at the large suburban houses, and the dim street lights. "No, Harold. You can take me home know." He nods and turns down another street. We arrive at my home shortly after.

Not until this moment have I felt a sense of dread while looking at Senri's and my home. It seems to loom over me, and I give another weary sigh as Harold opens the door. As I get out he wishes me luck and I can't help but chuckle a bit at it. I thank him though and travel up the stone pathway to the front door.

It is eerily quiet when I enter the house, nearly to the point that I wonder if anyone is even home. I hang up my coat by the door and venture up the stairs to the bedrooms. Exhaustion weighs heavier on me with each step that I take, and by the time I reach the top of the steps I want nothing more than to retire to bed. Before I go into Senri's and my room though, I stop by Mizuki's and check on our daughter. She is still awake in her crib, but thankfully isn't crying.

Once she sees me she begins to coo, and for a moment I almost think that she is smiling up at me. Despite being tired I reach down and pick her up, rocking her in my arms while I whisper soothing words against her forehead. It is in the midst of this bonding that I begin to feel a familiar presence, and turn around to face my beloved Senri. He stands in the doorway of the room, the oversized t-shirt he's wearing nearly devouring his body. His hair is more disheveled than usual though he seems restless. When I first turn to face him he is looking down at Mizuki, but soon looks up to meet my gaze.

I offer a small smile in the wake of him. "I didn't think you'd still be up," I say though in truth really, I was hoping that he would've gone to sleep early tonight.

Senri ignores my comment entirely, instead asking, "How's Cross?" As if it were required of him, rather than out of sincerity.

"She's fine," I answer as I place Mizuki back into her crib. I gently stroke her temple as I continue to speak. "For a moment we were afraid that we'd have to take her to the hospital, but thankfully she's better now."

He taps the doorframe with a finger. "That's great," He says rather apathetically. I choose to ignore it though.

With Mizuki safely in her crib, I approach Senri and guide him out into the hallway closing the door behind us. My dear quickly withdraws from my touch and folds his arms over his chest seeming to withdraw into himself. He appears so childlike when he's like this.

"I received your message." I tell him, because I can't think of any other way to start. I give him a moment to speak, but when he doesn't I continue. "I'm so sorry for missing your fashion show, Senri," I apologize. "It was never my intention to."

Senri doesn't say anything at first but when he does it is only to mutter a simple 'oh' as he averts his gaze to the floor. There as a moment of silence between us then as I try to figure out how to progress from here. Meanwhile, I notice Senri clenching his jaw out the corner of my eye as if contemplating something. I think briefly about reading his mind, but stop myself upon remembering the promise that I made to myself not to. Still, I wonder what he could possibly be thinking about that could bring such a look to his eyes.

"Kaname, why did you marry me?" My dear asks suddenly, body tense and eyes still trained at his feet.

I'm taken a back, and for a moment all thought stops for an instant before flashing through all of the possibly reasons why he would ask me such a thing.

"Why?" I repeat, still thrown off by the question, "Because I love you, of course."

Senri's arms tighten around his body, but for some strange reason he doesn't seem convinced by my words. I'm still unsure of how to react, but reach out and tilt his chin up to face me. I see tears in his eyes when I do which shocks me even more so. I try not to stumble over my words as I speak to him.

"Senri," I say his name softly almost as if speaking to a child, "I'm sorry that I've been neglecting you lately- I truly am- but I do love you." I brush away tears from his flushing cheeks. "I think about you nearly every hour of everyday and I married you because I couldn't imagine a life without by my side."

My beloved leans into my touch though he still refuses to look at me. "So it wasn't because of Mizuki?" He asks me, his tone filled with doubt.

I hesitate to answer this question, still confused about the situation.

"I… will admit that Mizuki's birth pushed our marriage up sooner than I had planned, but I knew long before you became pregnant that I wanted to be with you for the rest of my life."

Senri looks up at me, sorrow clear in his eyes. But why? What has gotten into him and why all of these questions?

Before I can ask him Mizuki begins to cry, her screams only muffled slightly by the door.

I hold in a sigh. "I'll take care of her," I assure Senri, "Go into our room and I'll be there soon to finish talking."

Without a word Senri turns and begins to walk down the hallway towards our room. My gaze lingers after him for only a moment before I go into Mizuki's room to care for her. This doesn't take too long and once I am done I retire into our bedroom only to find that Senri has already gone to bed. Without a single goodnight or word otherwise my beloved has gone to sleep, leaving me with filled with concern.

Instead of waking him to finish our conversation though, I take the baby monitor from the room, close the door, and retreat to my study where I ponder of Senri's strange behavior, the incident that caused me to miss his fashion show in the first place, and- more importantly- how I was going to win back my beloved's affection. I eventually fall asleep there, on the sofa, and doze restlessly throughout the night, thoughts of a past long gone plaguing my dreams.

* * *

I don't know why, but I'm feeling the need to remind everyone that "night" for Kaname and Senri, etc is daytime for humans, and vice versa. So when they say or refer to night, the sun is up, and when they're referring to day, it's nighttime. Just a friendly remainder, because sometimes even I get turned around with that.


	10. Chapter 9 Part 2: Kaname

Days have passed since Senri's and my exchange. Since then we have existed in tense awkwardness beneath the same roof, speaking to each other only with curt short-handed words all the while trying to continue on with everyday life. I have tried several times to both apologize for missing his show and to talk about Senri's off putting questions, but to no avail. While my beloved claims that he is over the incident, he is still visibly upset about… something. Honestly, I believe that there is something else wrong other than my missing his show, though I haven't been able to figure it out yet.

Due to my promise not to read his mind, I haven't been able to search through his thoughts for an answer, and my talk with Takuma hasn't revealed anything either. I have no idea what is truly wrong and it, not knowing something or being in control, is torture. I do know, however, that I need to think of a good way to make things up to him, and show him that I still really do care for him.

An opportunity eventually presents itself one day when I hear of a play that will be premiering soon at our local theatre. It will be featuring an array of prestige actors and actresses, one of which I know is Senri's favorite. Apparently Senri has known the man for years, ever since his mother stared alongside him, and I know that my dear will be elated to see him perform after all this time.

I instantly begin to make arrangements to see the play as well as plan an entire evening together. This will be Senri's and my first time alone since coming home from the honeymoon nearly three weeks ago, and while this doesn't seem too long of a time for anything else I feel that we are due for a date by now. Yes, perhaps this is what we need to put these past few days behind us; some time alone. And so I begin making phone calls and scheduling reservations and such in hopes of making my love happy on our date.

The next day I am awoken by the sound of Mizuki's cries echoing from the baby monitor. I squeeze my eyes shut, and groan at the feeling of a headache growing in the back of my head.

"Senri…" I mumble but as I reach for his side of the bed, I find that it's empty. I jerk upward, fully awake now and alert, wondering where he is. Sleep induced shock starts to consume me as I call his name. I almost overlook the note that it left on his nightstand as I pull myself out of bed. I lean over and narrow my eyes to read it.

_Late minute photo shoot. At Pearl Park. Will be home later._

_-Senri_

With my dear's whereabouts now known I'm able to calm down, and for a moment I simply sit on the edge of the bed, rubbing my temples as my headache worsens. I also notice that my fingers have become strangely cold during the night, nearly numb, but shrug it off as I stand up.

"_How did he get up without waking me?" _I wonder as I venture into the hallway. I'm usually a light sleeper so Senri being able to sneak past me is unusual. I suppose I don't have much time to dwell on this though considering Mizuki's cries are becoming louder and more agitated. I assume she's hungry, and go to give her more of my blood.

Two hours later and Takuma and Seiren knock on my front door. I have a meeting to attend, and despite my desire to return to sleep I must go in order to ensure that things continue to run smoothly for the company.

I try not to let my exhaustion show as I meet them in the foyer.

"I have the tickets that you asked for, Kaname." Takuma beams. I've never been able to understand just how my friend can be so energetic and happy during this time. It's times like this that I can understand why some people find it hard to believe that he is a true vampire.

"Thank you, Takuma." I take the tickets from him and tuck them into my inner coat pocket. When I look up I see him grinning ear to ear with a "knowing" sort of look in his eyes.

"So~ you two are finally making up, huh?" he smirked. I sigh, though amused.

"I surely hope so," I say and, after bidding Mizuki and her caretaker goodbye, take my leave.

On Seiren's and my way to the meeting I ask the driver to make a detour at Pearl Park. Now that I have the tickets I want to ask Senri on a date as soon as possible and would much rather see him in person than do it over the phone.

At the park Seiren and I travel to Senri's modeling set, a parasol over us and that bitter smell of recently cut grass filling our lungs. Before we reach the set, I can already see my dear in the distance, posing in the shade of a large tree. I watch from a distance as he twists and turns his body this way and that for the perfect pose, and find myself almost envious as I gaze at him from afar. He appears so carefree and open right now when he is usually so closed and withdrawn around those who are not close friends. Yet here he is, amongst these other people, and seeming so… alive. I realize now that this is my first time seeing him pose for a photo shoot, but I can compare it to how he is when he is walking in a fashion show. It's no wonder he was so stifled and agitated while he was on maternity leave. It have been like being a bird trapped in a cage.

"He really is something over there, huh?"

A young man approaches me with a suspicious smile on his face. It is a familiar face though. I believe I've seen him at some of Senri's fashion shows, as well as at one of my dear's birthday parties. Beyond that, however, I do not know him.

"Yes, he certainly is," I answer. It's hard to take my eyes off of him actually. I wonder if he's noticed that I am here yet.

"Yeah, I'm just glad that he's feeling better." I glance over at the man as he speaks. "He seemed really upset last night; thought he was going to cry. I mean, I tried to comfort him as best as I could, but that's kind of hard to do so when you don't know what's wrong." He looks up at me. "Do you know what was wrong with him?"

This man, whoever he is, may appear genuine and naïve on the surface, but I easily see through the façade. It's in his eyes. He knows, on some level, what occurred between Senri and me though I do not know how. What I do know, however, is that I cannot let it show that this bothers me, and so I smile and play oblivious.

"I see...," He says, "Oh well." He shrugs. "I was just wondering." The gleam in his eyes brightens. What is he up to?

"I'm sorry. I don't believe I ever got your name," I inquire, now genuinely interested in who he is exactly. More importantly, I want to know how he knows my beloved but I'll find that out later.

"Alec," He replies. He holds out his hand for me to shake, but I ignore it.

The name seems very familiar, even more so than his face, but I still cannot entirely place him. I am opening my mouth to say more to this Alec fellow when I hear the photographer announce that it is time for a break.

A young woman instantly runs over to Senri. She places a jacket over his shoulder and, protecting him from the sun with a parasol, leads my beloved beneath a canopy. The other models and staff, meanwhile, scatter to the snack table and nearby park benches.

"I should be going," I excuse myself. "It was nice to meet you…" I trail off pretending to have forgotten his name. In reality it's a mind game, pretending to forget details like that in order to let him know that he means little to nothing to me.

"Alec," He repeats himself.

"Well, Alec, it was nice talking to you."

I turn and am beginning to walk away when I hear the young man say, "You too, Kuran-sama, and good luck making up with Senri."

I stop short and look back at him. The grin on his face has widened as he turns to leave. I watch him for a moment and wonder if that man, who I sense is a level C, is really brave or foolish enough to collude against a pureblood like this. Regardless of which it is I think I'll have to keep an eye out for him.

"Let's go, Seiren."

We head to the canopy where Senri is slouched back in a makeup chair. Makeup artists are touching up his appearance while hairstylists squeeze in between them to fix his hair.

"Why waste time with makeup when you're already perfect?"

Senri jumps at the sound of my voice and whips his head around to face me. Instantly a dissatisfied look crosses his face. I try not to let it bother me as I continue to smile.

"What are you doing here?" he moans.

"Well, was on my way to a meeting with the board of directors when I decided to come see you," I say as I approach him. He makes a gesture for the makeup artists to stop. They do and leave, along with Seiren, in order to give us time alone.

"So you stopped by here on your way to a company meeting, huh?"

I nod.

"That's odd," he says, "Considering you usually have meetings like that in the company's board room, and the company building is nowhere near this place." Heh, so clever.

"Okay, you've got me," I chuckle.

My dear shakes his head and sighs, "Kaname, what are you really doing here?" He asks and watches me through the mirror.

My smile fades as I let a sense of sincerity show through.

"I love you, Senri." I confess, and I feel as if I am telling him for the first time all over again.

My beloved partner glances down then turns in his chair, and looks up at me. "I love you too," He says though it is tinged with a bit of sadness that I cannot ignore.

Still, just hearing those words pass his lips sets my mind at ease. I don't understand exactly why, however. Did I really dare to think that he no longer did?

With those confessions out of the way, Senri becomes awkward and begins to tap on the back of the chair. "So… Why else did you come here?"

"Ah," Remembering why I was really there, I reach into my pocket and retrieve the tickets, holding them up for Senri to see. "It's opening night for a local play tonight. Will you accompany me?"

"Like… on a date?"

"Yes, my love; just the two of us," I answer him.

He thinks about it for a minute then asks what play we would be going to see. I hand him the tickets and watch as he reads over them. His eyes light up almost instantly, and I don't have to wait for him to say anything to know his answer.

I kiss my dear on the cheek- careful not to mess up his makeup- before I leave. While I'm glad and more than relieved that we were able to confirm our love for one another, actions speak louder than words. In other words, it is important that this date goes well today in order for me to show Senri, not just tell him, that he still means the world to me. It's because of this that I take a moment to go over everything that I have planned: first the play, followed by dinner at his favorite restaurant, and finished with a serene walk through the park hand in hand.

At first I thought that this would be too simple for my dear boy, but now I believe it's just the thing that we need.

"Kuran-sama?" I look up at the sound of my name. All of the directors are staring at me with concerned and confused gazes. I seem to have zoned out without meaning to.

"Ah, my apologies, gentlemen," I say, righting myself in my chair. "What were you saying?" And the meeting continues.

Once it is over I return home where I check on Mizuki before retreating into the master bedroom. Senri is there already napping on top of the covers. His shoes are still on, however, which I've never liked. I walk over to him and begin unlacing and removing his shoes hoping not to wake him. My beloved stirs for a moment, grumbles his thanks, and falls right back to sleep. I join him on top of the comforter and we doze together until nightfall when Mizuki's crying through the baby monitor rouses us.

Take care of Mizuki. Read over some letters. Return an important phone call or two. I look at the clock ticking away on my desk halfway through the second phone call and realize the time. I have to cut the conversation short in order to get ready for our date. Despite all the times that Senri has made us late for things in the past, I have a feeling that he won't forgive me if I did so.

And so I get dressed and ready quick enough and just in time for the doorbell to ring. Senri goes downstairs to answer it while I put on my shoes. I examine myself in the floor length mirror before heading downstairs to greet Mrs. Abigail.

On our way out of the house I notice that Senri is once again only wearing a light jacket. Though I desperately want- no need- to chastise him about this, I bite my tongue and hold it back for fear of ruining our day.

In the car we try to make small talk like 'how was your day' and 'did you ever finish so-and-so's homework assignment' until I bring up that Alec man that I had met earlier. Senri visually becomes tense upon hearing this name which makes me all the more curious as to who the vampire is to him.

"Um yeah, he's a friend of mine," Senri claims, "We met through work and stuff like that."

"Oh? Are you two close? I don't believe that I've heard you mention him before."

He hesitates. "No… not really." He tells me though I notice that as he tells me this he scratches his head, a nervous habit that he does when he's lying. I let it pass though; first because I once again do not want to ruin this night, and secondly because I know that he will only lie once more if I begin to harshly question him. I make mental note however to look into that man and continue with the conversation as if everything is okay.

"By the way, Kaname," Senri begins, "How did you get these tickets? I heard that they were sold out." He holds them up to the window to examine them beneath the passing lights.

A playful smile touches my lips as I tell him that I have my ways and leave it at that.

We arrive at the theatre shortly after, and I can't help but find Senri amusing as he clenches and unclenches his hands at his sides and tries his hardest to hide that little smile forming on his lips. He almost reminds me of a small child with how visibly eager he is for the play to start. Even behind his mask of calm and collectiveness, I can see the gleam in his eyes and the bounce in his step as he walks towards down the aisle to our seats. I'm glad though as it shows that this really was a step in the right direction.

Senri's and my seats are in the front row (nothing but the best for my dear.) Seconds after sitting down we are- or rather Senri is- approached by two young women who insist on taking a picture with him and chat happily about how much they admire him. Though Senri usually doesn't have too much of a problem entertaining his fans, I can see that he isn't as patient today. He's too excited for the play, and doesn't want to be bothered with cosmetic questions or think about work no matter how much he loves his job.

After a short while of allowing their chatting to go on, I leave over and kindly persuade them to leave. At first they are thrown off by my intervening, but soon smile and agree to leave. Once they are gone Senri leans in to me and whispers his thanks. I nod my welcome just as the show begins.

The lights are slowly dimmed until darkness consumes the room. We're in the dark for only an instant before the stage lights flicker on revealing a grey haired woman.

"Good evening ladies and gentlemen. Umbridge Theatre welcomes you to this evening's production of _Waiting for the King_." She announces followed by the generic plea to turn off any electronic devices, etc. I'm reminiscent of a time when this announcement wasn't necessary as there were no such things as cell phones or pagers during my original life. But then again that was long ago, and I suppose this is just the way that the world is these days.

_Gosh I'm old..._

"…In the unlikely event of an emergency, please take a moment to locate the exit closest to you… And now, if you may, sit back, relax and enjoy the show."

She bows and quickly walks off stage. The large burgundy curtains then withdraw and the play begins.

The first part of it goes off without a hitch, and is quite enjoyable. The setting is nicely constructed, the dialogue is believable and natural, and the cast is superb. Senri sits hunched forward in his seat with his elbows resting in his lap and his head balancing in his head. His eyes are wide and bright and filled with nothing but fascination as he watches the show.

While everything was great in the beginning, a quarter of the way through a malfunction occurs, injuring two of the actors including Senri's favorite. Fellow actors and stagehands instantly flood the stage in a panic. Someone shouts and the curtains are drawn closed. A series of whispers and mutters fill the audience as we anxiously wait to know what has happened. A rushed announcement soon informs us there has been a "minor issue" on the set, and that there has been a change in the cast as a result. We are told that in place of the injured cast members, two understudies will perform the rest of the play in their place. Even though this change is a bit upsetting, most of the audience seems content with the replacements and eagerly wait for the play to resume. The rest of the audience are displeased with this, and express it with disgruntled expressions and upset grumbles and complaints. My beloved is amongst these people, becoming sullen as he drops his gaze to the floor and slouches back in his seat.

"You've got to be kidding me…" he sighs, and for some reason I feel as if I am at fault for the incident.

"Would you like to stay?" I ask him to which he replies that he does not.

We then join the handful of audience members who quietly exit the back of the theatre, and wait at the front of the building for our driver to pick us up. A heavy silence settles over us as we wait, Senri's disappointment weighing it down even further to the point that it is uncomfortable.

"I was really looking forward to that play," Senri mumbles barely loud enough for me to hear. I want to say something to comfort him, but I don't know what exactly. I am still stumped as the car pulls up and Harold comes around and opens the door.

"Where to next, sirs?" Harold asks up front. Not knowing entirely I simply tell him to drive around in hopes that we may see something else to do.

I consider that we skip right ahead to dinner, but dinner and a walk through the park doesn't sound like it would be much of a night. Nightclubs and bars but they are far from ideal. I'm just about to give up and tell Harold to take us to the restaurant when I see it in the distance, a Ferris wheel. Upon seeing it and the spot lights reflecting against the blackened sky I realize that the carnival is in town.

Not long ago Senri- during whatever conversation- told me that he had never been a carnival before, not even as a small child. Yet here one way, just in sight and at the perfect moment as well. A light bulb goes off in my head in this instant, and I tell Harold to turn around directing towards the carnival.

* * *

_**Author's comments:**_

I've always kind of wondered where Kaname got his money from. Sure I guess he could have gotten it from some sort of inheritance from his late parents or something, but where did _they_ get it from and how would he continuously have enough money to live lavishly? So I begin to think that maybe the Kurans had some sort of big company or something like that where they got their money, and Kaname- being the last Kuran and having inherited everything- sometimes checks in on things from time to time as the owner of said company… I don't know, I'm a real stickler for details like that sometimes and tend to think too much about that sort of stuff. That and I was also reading over Black Butler and Batman comics when I thought of the company idea so… yeah.


	11. Chapter 9 Part 3: Kaname

"Huh?"

Senri sits up in his seat, a look of absolute confusion taking over his expression.

"Why are we heading towards the carnival?" he asks. He turns to look at me.

"You have never been to one, have you?"

He shakes his head.

"Well, why don't we go now?"

"_Right_ now?"

I nod. "Unless you don't want to." I continue.

My dear thinks about it for a moment, glancing out of the window. He worries his bottom lip in between his teeth as he considers our going. Passing car lights flicker in his eyes in the meantime and swipe across his cheeks.

"Alright," He finally speaks up, "I guess it'll be fine."

"Are you sure?" I certainly don't want to push him into going if he really doesn't want to.

He nods. "Yeah- um- it could be fun. I mean, like you said, I've never been before, but still…" He looks back to me. "It'll be great, right?"

I smile at him. "Of course." I say. "Especially if we're together."

Senri's lips pull tight in a line across his face. "You can be so sappy sometimes. You know that, right?"

I laugh, my voice carrying over the low music. "I believe a beautiful boy has told me that once or twice."

"Or thrice…"

I laugh again while Senri smiles and slouches back in his seat, gazing back out the window as we approach the dancing lights.

It's been nearly six years since I've been to a place like this- not since Yuki requested that I take her. Back then we rode iffy-if-not-suspicious rides, and ate cotton candy until the fair closed. I sat with a tuckered out Yuki all the way back to her home, and as I think back to it I believe that it was one of the best times of my life.

Now here I am with my beloved, and I soon find myself feeling excited to share the same kind of experience with him.

"What should we do first?" I ask him.

He shrugs. "I've never been here before so I don't really know what they have. You choose something."

I look around for a moment before deciding on a roller coaster that I think would be entertaining. Senri eyes me with his 'you've got to be kidding me' sort of look, but doesn't verbally protest.

The look on his face as the attendant locks him in is actually a bit hysterical. I'm able to snap a quick picture without him noticing, and tuck my phone away before the ride starts. At first his eyes are wide with fear and worry, but as the ride hits its first turn he squeezes them shut and grips the bar in front of him so tight that his knuckles begin to turn white. At one point I honestly believe that he's going to die of fright or something of the sort, and fear that maybe a roller coaster wasn't the best choice.

"Senri, I'm sorry. Perhaps that wasn't the best ride to get on, or at least not right away," I apologize once we get off.

"Are you kidding me!" He screams so suddenly and so loud that I jump. "That was so much fun! Does this place have more rides like that?"

I'm bewildered, then amused. "That was the only roller coaster here, but there are more rides that we can get on it you'd li-" my beloved grabs my hand and whisks me away before I can even finish my sentence.

We enjoy a variety of carnival rides after that, each as strangely named as the last. Senri gleefully pulls me through the crowd from one ride to the next until we have ridden them all. Once that happens he requests that we start all over again, though I suggest that we take a break and play some games instead. My spouse sighs- mumbling his disbelief that the games will be nearly as fun as the rides- but allows me to lead him to a nearby stand.

Senri ends up enjoying these games as much as the he did the other amusements. This excitement greatens once he wins his first prize, his face lighting up with absolute delight as the vendor hands him a decent sized teddy bear.

"What was that about games not being as fun?" I tease him. He blushes slightly in embarrassment and rolls his eyes.

"Yeah well, whatever," he grumbles beneath his breath. I chuckle and kiss his cheek which doesn't help the redness in them.

We play a few more games after that, winning so many in fact that we end up having to give some of our prizes away. We hand them off to passing teenagers and small children, and continue through the carnival like new lovebirds; hand-in-hand with Senri idly resting his head against my shoulder whenever we wait in lines. Everything is going so surprisingly well actually that I almost forget about our previous dispute. It's only once we get onto the Ferris wheel, the thing that brought us here in the first place, that it begins to loom over us.

Without the excitement of the rides and games to distract us the topic comes up again with Senri asking me if I even truly wanted to come to his show that night.

"Or did you just say so because I kept bothering you about it?" he asks his question hesitantly as he fumbles with the teddy bear squeezed in beside him.

I take a deep breath, having known that this talk would come eventually.

"I've never been fond of social gatherings of any kind, Senri- you know that-, but as always I was willing to go for you." I tell him though perhaps I'm a bit too honest.

My beloved sighs, still fumbling with the bear's ear.

"Senri, I don't mean to sound offensive, but why are you so upset by this?" I ask him. "I know that this recent show was important to you, but aren't they all? I didn't mean to miss it, and I apologize for not answering your messages, but I- well- is there something else that I should know about?"

I know that there is, but I want to hear it from him.

At first he doesn't answer, but when I press for a response he sighs and glances out over the carnival below.

"What's Cross to you?" He asks.

I raise a brow. "Pardon?"

He sighs again and looks down at his feet dangling off the edge. "I mean, you two are always talking to each other- even when you're not at school, and she's always hugging you and stuff whenever she can. And you- you look at her sometimes with like this _look_. I don't really know how to describe it, but it's kinda how you look at me and I-"

"Stop," I tell him.

"I mean, I'm not jealous or anything! I just-"

"Senri, stop!" He quickly closes his mouth, eyes wide, and swallows back the knot in his throat.

"Senri, look at me," I coax him. He does so and looks up at me with a gaze filled with anguish. Tears gather in the corner of his eye which I gently brush away with a swipe of my thumb. I leave my hand there to caress his cheek. Senri leans into my touch, but the sadness is still there.

"I love you. I have been in love with you since the day we met as children and those feelings for you have done nothing but grow since. No one, and I mean no one, holds the same place in my heart as you do and they never will, not even Yuki."

This seems to comfort him a bit so I continue. "It's true that she means a lot to me, and I will admit that I care for her, but I'm not in love with her. I promise you that."

"…Okay."

"And, like I said when you asked me before, I married you because you mean the world to me." I place my other hand on the other side of his face, nestling his face in between my hands. "I also married you not only because of our daughter, but because I couldn't stand to live apart from you."

He reaches up and touches one of the hands on his cheek. "Alright… I believe you."

"Please do." I kiss his forehead. "It'll shatter my heart if you don't." I say with a smile.

He gives a short chuckle and shakes his head. "You're so dramatic."

Now it's my turn to laugh, and for a moment after we simply sit there, absorbed in our reaffirmed love for one another as we watch the rest of the world go by.

Once we get off, we wonder around the carnival for a little while longer to see what else this place has to offer. I'm just about to suggest we go someplace else, maybe for something to eat, when Senri gets my attention.

"What is that?" He asks as he points to a plate in an older woman's hands.

"That's a funnel cake, dear," I inform him, then, "Have you ever eaten one before?"

He shakes his head. A part of me believes that I should be stunned by this, while another isn't quite so. To remedy this though, I lead us to a nearby concession stand where I purchase a plate of the powdered sweet for us to share. We sit down at a far from clean picnic bench set up nearby and eat from the plate balanced in my hand. Since Senri's hands are full with our remaining prizes, I have to feed him. I don't have a single problem with this, especially considering how arousing this simple act turns out to be.

I press another piece to his lips. He swallows the previous bite down his throat, and opens up for more. White powder clings to the wet of his mouth as his tongue darts out for another taste. He licks it away before accepting the rest. Another pleased rumble and he looks up at me with a joyful gleam in his eyes.

"This is _so_ good," He mumbles pass the food in his mouth. "I can't believe I've never had this before."

"Well there's a first time for everything, love." I tell him though it ends up coming out as something more like a groan when Senri's lips close around one of my fingers.

"Oops. Sorry." He licks his lips again though he misses a few specks of sugar clinging to the corner of his mouth.

"It's… fine, dear." I choke out as I wipe his mouth clean with a napkin.

It's as I do this that I look up and notice that while we've been eating a few men have stopped to watch us. Rather they've stopped to watch my beloved spouse. They stare at him, some like predators watching prey and others in a hypnotized daze.

I shoot them warning glare and frighten them away before Senri notices, and we finish eating without incident.

Senri is ready to leave after that. This has perfect timing considering that it is about time for the carnival to close. Before we left, Yuki had asked me to win her the biggest prize that the carnival had to offer. I did so with joy and won her a large stuffed tiger that I believe she still has in her childhood bedroom to this day. As Senri and I prepare to leave, I find myself wanting to do the same thing and search about to such a prize.

I find it soon enough; a large stuffed penguin hanging from the top of a game booth. The vendor running it is just about to close up when I approach and ask if we can play. She twists her mouth, obviously not pleased to work longer than need be, but- glancing between my beloved and I- finally agrees.

"Three tries," she tells me, "Then I close shop."

I nod and place some money on the table.

The game of this booth is a simple milk bottle game. Several thick glass bottles are stacked in the shape of a pyramid. I am handed a good sized hacky sack and instructed to knock them down. This is rather easy for me, and it only takes me one try to make the structure crumble.

The woman's mouth falls agape. I hear Senri's pleased laughter behind me, and stand back, proud, as the vendor regains herself.

"Winner! Winner!" she cries and asks me to choose my reward. I choose the penguin and pass it on to my darling once it is handed to me.

He stares at it then down at the prizes already in his hands. In the end we trade with me taking the lesser prizes and leaving Senri to cuddle his favorite animal.

"I guess I owe Cross an apology."

Senri and I are walking across the makeshift parking lot towards the car. I look at him, confused, and ask him why. He sighs and twists his mouth.

"I may have left a rather- um- nasty message on her cellphone."

My mouth drops open in disbelief. "Senri, please tell me that isn't true."

"I drank some wine the night you ditched me and got angry," He groans. He peaks up at me then quickly looks away. "I _said_ I'll apologize. You don't have to look at me like that!"

I huff and shake my head, but say nothing. My lover, sometimes I just don't know what to make of him.

"When did you even get her phone number?" I ask him.

"Got it at our wedding reception. You know, just in case something happened with Mizu. I've never used it until that night though, and haven't since."

I shake my head again. My beloved…

"So where are we going next?" Senri asks as he slips into the car.

I slip in beside him and Harold closes the door behind us. "I was thinking that we go home. Unless you have somewhere else in mind…"

An impish smirk curls his lips. "Well~ we can always go to a hotel," he purrs, "You can make the other night up to me."

The smirk twisting his lips is nothing if not a blatant invitation for sex. I waste no time in accepting, telling Harold to head to the nearest hotel and dialing Takuma on my cellphone. I ask our friend if he can take over for Miss Abigail and watch over Mizuki for the night.

"Sure!" he chirps into my ear.

"Thank you, old friend. I'll be sure to pay you back for it," I say, trying not to groan as Senri trails his hand up my inner thigh.

"No worries. It's not like I was doing anything anyway." I'm about to say something when Takuma continues, "Have fun, and don't forget to wear protection! But hey, uh, if you don't, can I pick the baby's name this time?"

_That's right, we need condoms._ I remember.

We stop by a convenience store on our way to the hotel. I'm about to get out when Senri volunteers to do so.

"Are you sure?" I ask. "I can easily go get them."

"I know," he says as he opens the door. "I'll be right back." He closes the door behind him and goes into the store.

The moment he leaves a sudden sense of awkward loneliness consumes me. Harold quietly sits in the front, casually tapping on the steering wheel as he watches people walking up and down the sidewalk. I soon find myself doing something similar, tapping my fingers on my thighs and I wait for my beloved to return. I'm trying to find something interesting to stare at when my phone begins to buzz.

Looking down, I'm surprised to see that it is Yuki calling me. Curiosity strikes me and I almost want to answer it. Almost. If Senri were to walk in on me talking to Yuki in the midst of our date, I fear that it could undo what we said on the Ferris wheel. So I ignore the phone call, letting it go to voicemail instead.

My phone buzzes again a few seconds later, a text message from her.

'_Hi, Kaname-sama! I just wanted to thank you for watching after me when I was sick. I'll be sure to do something extra special for you in order to pay you back! ^_^'_

I smile, and slip my phone back into my jacket pocket. Another message comes in the instant that I do.

'_Also I'm sorry if caused any problems with you and Senri-san. He left me a voice message saying some pretty weird things and I'm SOOOO sorry if I made things strange. D:'_

I don't have time to decide if I want to reply to this message or not before the car door is opening again.

"Back." He slides in next to me, a plastic bag hanging from his wrist.

"I'm glad. I was beginning to miss you."

"Beginning to?" He scoffs.

I smile at his jest and hold up my phone.

"What is that?" He asks me as he leans in close to the screen and reads the message. His face turns pink as he does.

"Yeah, um, I'll be sure to apologize tomorrow or something." My beloved states and he clears his throat in embarrassment.

"You two should make up either way. I hate to see the two people closest to me not get along."

He sighs then shrugs.

"Careful about that two closest people thing. Takuma would get jealous if he were to hear you say that."

Maybe he would though he is a close third.

"Speaking of jealous, were you really envious of Yuki?"

Senri's eyes quickly become wide as he jerks upright in his seat. "W-who said that I was jealous!" He demands to know.

"You did. Back on the Ferris wheel. Remember?"

He groans. My dear sinks down into the seat and covers his face with his hands, the bag rustling as he does so.

"Maybe a little." He grumbles through his hands.

I can't help but laugh at this. I can't imagine my supermodel spouse being jealous of-well- anyone. It all seems too silly to me, and I can hardly believe it.

"I don't see why though because-"

"Yeah yeah, because you love me more than the stars or something like that."

"Hmm, yes, that too, but I was going to say that Yuki doesn't have your level of seduction."

Senri peaks over at me from in between his fingers. "What does that mean?"

"It means that all you have to do is _look_ in my direction and my heart skips a beat. Yuki has never had that effect on me. Also, and while I certainly wouldn't know this firsthand, I highly doubt that Yuki is as- um- kinky as you."

He chuckles and smirks. "I can get pretty freaky, huh?"

"Well, you did have an orgasm once while I spanked you, and do have a habit of calling me 'daddy'."

"Oh _please_. We both know you love it when I call you daddy, daddy." He purrs as he sits back up, leaning over towards me with slow prowl. The added emphasis on the last word has my blood pumping harder and my pants growing just a little bit tighter.

"Say it again," I beg of him.

He leans in a little closer, hair shading his eyes. The word drips off his lips like honey. "Dad-dy."

I'm grabbing him before I my mind can even register the action. Our mouths collide, messy, clumsy. Senri groans and grabs onto my shoulders as he practically throws himself on top of me. Up front, and pass the one way tinted glass divider, Harold casually turns the radio up a little louder.

"Daddy," Senri pants into my ear. "I need you to fuck me." His erection nudges into my thigh as he straddles my legs.

"Oh don't worry, my love; I will," I gently move him from my lap and back into his seat. "But I'm until able to that, try and calm down at bit." I say with amusement. Senri whines but withdraws from me completely and folds his hands in his lap to try and hide his arousal. By the time we arrive at the hotel his erection has gone down though it seems that the fires of his passion have not. He still taunts me even as we enter the lobby, purposely strutting in front of me, his hips swinging with every bounce of his step to tempt me into just taking him; to just ravage him in front of all of these people and-

I take a deep breath and avert my gaze. My fantasies are about to get ahold of me. I really should get that under control.

Ask the receptionist for a room, pay for it, accept our key; though all of this, in reality, doesn't take long, I feel as if it takes an eternity especially when Senri once again begins to tease me. In the midst of paying for the room, I notice my beloved husband leaning against the countertop beside me. This isn't what captivates me though. No, it's the way that he idly brushes his fingers along the flesh of his neck that nearly does me in. As the young man behind the desk finishes the transaction, my sweetheart tilts his head to the side- baring his throat to me- and slowly trances his jugular vein with a finger. All the while he pretends to observe the painting behind the desk.

I can practically hear his blood singing in his veins, nearly drowning out the receptionist's voice as he tries to catch my attention.

"Ah yes, thank you." I snap out of Senri's trance long enough to accept the room key. You can imagine both my and the receptionist's surprise when my beloved suddenly reaches up and snatches the plastic card from our hands.

Without a word he then struts off towards the elevator leaving both of us stunned. It's times like this that I wonder what I have gotten myself into marrying such a person. Still, I shake my head, an amused smile on my lips, and follow him.

**Author's Comments:**

This 3 part chapter ended up becoming a 4 part chapter due to me wanting to do too much with it. I apologize. But, good news! The absolute last part of this chapter will be up within 24 hours! After that I will (hopefully) be updating this fanfic every- hmm- let's say two weeks. So two weeks from Saturday I will be posting chapter 10 and so on and so forth. That's pretty good news, right? Especially in comparison to how often I usually update this fanfic. ^_^'


	12. Chapter 9 Part 4: Kaname

Our hotel room is a simple suite complete with a decent sized sitting room and bedroom, and conjoining bathroom. The overall color scheme is that of dark earth tones with occasional beige and oranges here and there to break it up. The curtains are pulled back when we enter to reveal the cityscape.

As I put up the "do not disturb" sign on the door, Senri ventures into the sitting area of the suite and begins to make himself comfortable. He sets the keycard on an end table and removes his shoes, nudging them to the side. I remain by the door and watch him as he strips off his clothes. He drapes his button up sweater over the back of the chair and moves on to unbutton his top. I watch him as he shrugs off the garment, the fabric slowly slipping away from fair skin. Senri glances back at me from over his shoulder, a beckoning gaze in his eyes.

I approach him without hesitation and press my body against his. My hands grasp his shoulders and I press my nose into the joining of his neck and shoulder, breathing in and savoring his scent. His skin is so soft and placid beneath my fingertips as I push the rest of the shirt from his arms. The blood lust within me rises until it finally boils over.

"_Ooooh_~!" He groans long and low as my fangs pierce him.

The irresistible taste of blood gushes into my mouth making me give a low moan of my own. I wrap my arms around him, holding him close as I sink my fangs in further. He gasps then grunts and shutters in my embrace. His head lolls back as his hands grasp as my forearms. He's babbling something beneath his breath, something that I can't hear over the heavy pounding of his heart and the roar of rushing blood.

They make a hypnotic symphony, these sounds. They're like music to my ears especially when combined with his moaning and pleading for me to take more, for me to consume him whole.

"Don't stop," he whines in between panting breaths. "_Please_ don't stop."

I almost don't want to. The thought of consuming him whole is tempting- like first nature- but as much as I want to give in to it, I don't. Instead, I release him just as his legs begin to buckle and he swoons in my arms, and carry him across the room to the double bed.

I lie him down on the beige comforter and climb on top of him, kissing him softly. A few short kisses and I lean back on my heels, still atop him. My beloved watches with excitement as I unbutton and roll up my sleeves.

I bite into my wrist- sharp pain shooting up my nerves. The rich scent of my blood ascends into the air. Senri's mouth instantly begins to water for it, and he sits up as if burning for a taste. I gently guide him to back down to the bed with my free hand and dig my fangs in a little deeper to bring more blood into my mouth. Once I have enough I lean back down to meet his lips.

He opens his mouth instantly to accept my blood and a pleased hum rumbles his throat. His arms pull around me and I feel his tongue slip pass my lips. Our tongues tangle together in a clumsy dance, our blood mixing together with our saliva the taste of carnival snacks. It's in the midst of our kissing that Senri bites down hard on my tongue, releasing more into his mouth. I withdraw almost instantly.

"You greedy little minx." I smirk as I wipe the red from my mouth and chin. Senri grins. He stretches out across the sheets, his body twisting beautifully against the fabric.

He licks the blood from his lips and teases me. "What are you gonna do about it?"

A low growl rumbles up from deep in my chest. I bite my lip in between my teeth, trying desperately to restrain the lust surging within. But it's hard to contain it, to not just lunge at him and ravage him to pieces.

"Oh, I have a few ideas…" I rasped and he visibly shivers at the sound of it.

The smirk on his face widens, but there's something there in his eyes. It's arousal, yes, and want, but also an arousing kind of fear- like prey that truly wants to be taken- all mixed together in his lovely ice blue eyes.

"Get over on your stomach," I order him. His smile falters, but the excitement is still there as he rolls over. I remove my shirt and use it to tie my love's arms behind his back. He grunts as I tighten the restraint, and though I'm sure that we both want this, I still need to make sure that the makeshift restraint isn't _too_ tight.

"No- uh- I'm fine," He stutters, "Just hurry up already and-AAHHH!" He cuts himself off with a surprised shriek. I smack his cheeks again as a warning.

"Watch your tone, love." I growl in his ear. "I'll fuck you when I feel you deserve it." Another visible tremble to his body.

"I'm sorry, daddy. Forgive me." He flinches when my hand next touches him though it is only to ease his ass through his tight fitting pants.

"It's okay. I forgive you," I assure him. "Now let's get rid of these."

I remove Senri's pants and underwear with the little bit of help that he is able to give. Once they're gone I knead his taut cheeks, massaging and parting them to see the puckered hole in between.

"Get up on your knees, and push back towards me."

Senri does as ordered and without hesitation. He jolts stiff when I spit on the cleft of his cheeks, and I watch as it drips down to gather at the tight muscle.

"Such a pretty little hole my sweetheart has." I whisper, almost to myself. Senri shivers and I imagine that his face is starting to become red again.

He jumps, startled, when I spank his ass again, cheeks quivering as a result. "And what do you say when someone pays you a compliment, Senri?"

"T-thank you, daddy," he breathes. I smile and lean down to kiss the spot that I just hit.

"That's my good boy," I mouth against the abused flesh causing tiny goose bumps to rise beneath my breath. "And good boys deserve to be rewarded for their behavior, don't they?"

He hums in agreement and pushes his butt further back, practically begging to be fucked. That, however, isn't what I have in mind right now. It's been too long- or at least too long in my opinion- since I've last touched him like this, since I've last been able to make him wither and scream my name to the heavens. It feels like it's been forever since we've been able to make love and right now all I want to do is savor this moment before it's gone; make him wither for just a little bit longer before I take him completely. And I know the perfect way to do so too.

I nudge at his entrance with a finger. There's a little give in its tightness but not much, and it is by no means unattractive. If anything this makes it a bit easier to finger him open. One at first to ease the way, followed by a second and he is squirming in no time. The soon added feeling of my tongue lapping and prodding at his hole only adds to the sensual torment that I'm dealing onto him.

"Ohh yes. God, _yesss_." His voice sounds so pitiful, yet at the same time so arousing. And so this continues for some time, me eating his sweet little boy's pussy out in conjoint to playing with and abusing his poor little prostate.

I remember a time when it would take much more to make him come, but now he shivers in blissful delight without his cock even having to be touched. I continue to finger him through his orgasm until his body collapses onto the bed and into the spurts of semen that now streak the comforter. While he recovers I get up and remove the rest of my clothes. By now my arousal aches for relief, having been ignored for so long, and it feels so great to be able to release it.

I take the condom and lubricant from the convenience store bag, and prepare myself to take him, slipping on a condom and spreading my cock with enough lubricant so as not to hurt my dear.

A few minutes later and my beloved has recovered enough to continue. I roll him over onto his back. Senri's face is flushed and glistening with sweat as he draws in ragged breaths. Still his eyes light up at the sight of my cock and he practically drools to have it.

"Does my boy want my cock?"

He swallows hard and gives a jerking nod. "Please, daddy," He begs, "Give it to me."

A smirk curls my lips. "You can certainly have it if you want it, dear." He licks his lips. "But only if you ride it."

Senri is shocked by my response though this expression quickly turns into something more like annoyance and disbelief. "You-You're kidding, right?"

I shake my head still amused. Blinking once, twice, Senri grumbles, calling me a bastard as well as mumbling other slurs, before soon giving in.

I lie down on the bed beside him and help him into my lap situating him over me. He struggles to catch his balance and line himself up with me. I hold myself still as he lowers himself.

Senri slowly spears himself on my cock, body arching as my length drives up into his core. I hold my breath as he does so and grip him beneath his thighs for support.

"That's it, Senri. Take all of me." I rub my hand up and down the back of his leg in encouragement.

His voice quivers as he sits flushed on my cock, beautifully mounted on my manhood. I reach back to squeeze his cheeks.

"How does it feel?"

He licks his lips before answering. "Amazing. Like always," he mewls with a lazy smile. This smile falters, however, when I lift him up only to then drive him back down on my length. I do this a few time before allowing him to take over, bouncing as best he can to get his pleasure. His cock bounces in unison against his stomach, deep red and just aching to be relieved.

I reach up and rub the tip of it to make him mewl and groan.

"Stop doing that!" he cries, but the motion of his hips doesn't slow down. In fact, they pick up their pace, bouncing him faster, harder on my cock to the point that I'm clinging to his thighs for what feels like dear life as I mutter his name like a prayer. I can barely hear my own voice though over the sound of flesh slapping against flesh and Senri's whimpers and moans and screams of pleasure.

"So good, daddy." He pants, "It's _so_ good, Kaname. So _fucking_ good!" He shouts and grinds down on me for good measure. I feel as if I'm about to lose my mind in all of this. My body is so hot, inside and out and I can start to feel the heat tightening, coiling in the pit of my stomach. It won't be long before I lose myself to his graces and I spill my seed. If only it could be inside of him, filling him up until he couldn't take anymore.

I grab ahold of his sides and drive up inside of him, alternating between that and lifting and pulling him back down as hard as I can. One short thrust, at just the right angle, and Senri's eyes roll back into his head as his body trembles in delight.

He doesn't come this time though, instead falling forward onto my chest breathing heavy. Heh, I think I've worked my boy too hard. But we're far from through, so I reposition us so that Senri is laid back on the bed, his legs splayed open as I angle his hips up so that his hole is offered to me.

It's open and just waiting for me to fuck back inside, so I oblige and plunge back into that addictive heat.

His mouth hangs open as I slowly thrust back into him. Needy moans spill from his lips. One of Senri's hands find mine on his thighs and grips it, his nails digging into the skin. I wonder when it was that he broke free of his restraints. I'll have to be sure to punish him later on, though the thought of this as well that the pain from his nails are quickly lost in the bliss of his body.

So beautiful; my spouse is so beautiful. So much so that sometimes I can't believe that he belongs solely to me. That I and I alone can ravage this perfect body; caress his soft locks; kiss his luscious tempting lips whenever I please, and hear his wanton moans to my heart's content.

"**AH**!" he throws his head back into the mattress. I had angled his hips in such a way so that I may prod at his prostate. His hips jerk with each short jab and it's only a matter of time before he spills his seed all over his own stomach.

"That's it, my love." I wrap my hand around his cock. He gasps, tears whelming up in his eyes. While one hand remains over mine, the other fists the comforter beneath him. "Spill for me."

I stroke him slowly, alternating between jerking him off at the shaft and fondling the head of his cock to pleasure him.

Senri whimpers and groans my name. I claim his mouth just as the last of my name leaves it, kissing him with such passion that it leaves even me breathless and dazed. But I kiss him again and again, delving deeper each time as he moans into my mouth and down my throat as I stroke him to completion.

Suddenly my beloved turns away from me, saliva clinging to his lips. He jerks forward, then arches back again, his body becoming wracked with spasms as he comes.

"Dadd- Agh! Kaname~!"

The feeling of him constricting around me, it's almost too much. I'm seeing stars. I brace my arms on either side of him, craning my body over him as I groan his name in his ear. A few more jerking thrusts and I come as well, squeezing my eyes shut just as a shattering pleasure assaults my nerves. In the midst of my coming I feel my beloved wrap his arms around me holding my close against him.

I lick my lips and swallow, struggling to gasp. I fuck into him a few more times as we come down from our high, the earth settling around us and the pounding in our ears quieting down until the only sound that I can hear is that of our breathing.

It takes a moment, but I'm soon able to work myself up to pull out of him. I remove the condom and dispose of it. Returning to the bed, I lay down beside him.

"We need to do that more often." I hear him say.

"Are you talking about the sex or the bondage?" I ask.

"Both." He pants and curls up against me. "I miss you tying me up," Senri coos. "Almost as much as I miss tying _you_ up." He rubs his hand up and down my chest, skin practically glowing.

I laugh. "I really haven't had a reason to 'punish' you lately. My boy has been so good lately… well, for the most part."

"Well, I guess I'll have to be naughty more often then."

I turn and kiss him. "Maybe you will."

Senri grins and quickly kisses me back. This leads to a short make out session, as we gather the strength to get up. Once we're finally able to pull apart from one another we retire to the bathroom where we clean up, lazily touching each other in the process.

As we retire into the bedroom, thoroughly spent, I smile and think how perfect an ending this is to a perfect night. Now if only I could tell him the truth of that night…

**FLASHBACK:**

"_Is he still there, Seiren?" Kaname asked._

"_Yes, sir," the young woman replied, "I informed him that your and Shiki-sama's daughter was in the midst of her bath, but he insisted on waiting in order to see her."_

_The pureblood sighed on his end of the line. He checked the time on his cellphone's screen. Only ten more minutes before his beloved's fashion show was to start. He was hoping to make it on time, but with this sudden dilemma he feared that he wouldn't be able to make it to the event at all. He sighed again and rubbed the upper bridge of his nose. He pressed the phone back to his ear._

"_Is he alone?"_

"_Yes, Kaname-sama."_

_Well, that was a partial relief. At least Jiro wasn't stupid enough to try and bring henchmen or the like to his home. Still, there was the problem that he dared to enter his home in such a manner, asking once again for Mizuki as if with malice intentions.. Kaname admired the man's drive, but it seemed that he needed to take care of his in-law once and for all; for his family's sake._

"_Very well. I will be there shortly. Keep him distracted and away from Mizuki until then, even if it means doing so by using force."_

_Seiren wasted no time in voicing her understanding, and Kaname hung up the phone, a frown fit firmly on his face._

"_A change in plans, Harold." The chauffeur looked up into the review mirror at the sound of his name. "I need you to take me home."_

_The man's shock was clear to Kaname who gave a saddened smile and shook his head. "You don't need to say it, Harold. I already know, but this is an emergency."_

_Harold nodded and- less than two minutes from the event venue- turned the car around. The low leveled vampire instantly felt sorry for his employer, knowing the backlash that could come from missing such an important night._

* * *

**Author's Comments:**

Well chapter 9 is (**FINALLY**)done! Been a while without some smut, huh? Honestly, this fanfic was long overdo for a sex scene so I just had to write it, and I hope you guys were eager to read it.

Like I mentioned before the next chapter will be posted in two weeks so please check in then to read how things continue. As usual comments make me smile and are always welcomed. Oh! And I'm also changing the name from "Love after Letters" to "Life after Letters" I don't why that simple word change has been bugging me but it has. *shrug*


	13. Chapter 10: Senri

"Senri, please go put on a coat," he tells me _again_, and yet again I tell him that I don't need to.

"I like the cold," I tell him, "Besides, it's not like-"

"You can get sick. Yes, you've told me, but it would still make me feel better if you went and changed."

I roll my eyes and return to building my snowman.

"Papa is too worrisome," I whisper to Mizu, who's all bundled up head to toe beside me. I don't really know why I'm talking to her though. Even if she could understand me, it's not like she's listening. She's too preoccupied with the falling snowflakes to really worry about me or Kaname.

I can't really blame her being distracted though. It's the first snowfall of the season, and her first time seeing the stuff so I guess it's only natural that she be entranced by it-

"_Aaaahhh_! What the hell?!" I scream jumping forward and colliding with my snow…thing (honestly, I don't even think that it could've ever been called a snow**man**.)

I flail around on the ground, clawing at the sharp chill sinking into my back as I try to figure out what the fuck just happened. Kaname's laughter quickly turns my attention to him. He's bent over, clasping his stomach as he laughs so hard that tears actually form in his eyes.

"What in the world was that!" I yell at him.

He gasps in between wheezing breaths, "A snowball."

"A _what_? Why would you shove a snowball down my shirt!"

It takes him a moment to catch his breath, but once he does he tells me that it was punishment for not listening to him. Not _listening_ to him? Is he crazy! Why in the world would _anyone_ shove a ball of freezing snow down someone's shirt for not obeying them?!

"You psychopath!" I cry.

Kaname pats at his eyes with the back of his leather gloved hand. "It couldn't have been that bad," he claims.

"Not that bad?" I look to Mizu in disbelief. By now our daughter's attention is fully on us, and from the look of her, she's entirely amused. I look back at my partner. "Oh, yeah? Well let's see how you'd like a snowball down _your_ shirt!"

I quickly gather up at bunch of the white stuff and lunge towards Kaname. We end up wrestling around in the snow in some weird kind of snow fight until Kaname suddenly stops. By now, and despite me being on top of him, he's managed to snatch and hold both of my hands up over my head. I'm struggling to get loose when I notice that he's no longer paying attention to me. Instead, he has his head turned towards Mizuki with this stunned sort of look on his face. I instantly get scared and a series of "oh my gosh what happened to her?" questions fill my head.

I look over too, to see what happened and, well, she's _smiling_. Actually, she's laughing. My Mizu is _laughing_ and _smiling_. I almost can't believe it.

Without a single look in each other's direction Kaname and I instantly pull apart and scramble over towards her.

Mizuki continues to laugh- well, more like squeal- in enjoyment and doesn't stop when Kaname picks her up from her carrier.

"She's finally smiling," he swoons. He says it so low that I'm not entirely sure if he's talking to me or to himself. I do know that he's really happy though. I know that for the past couple of weeks he's been looking up when infants are supposed to smile so this moment must seem like a wish come true. Plus, this couldn't have happened at a better time. We have a photoshoot scheduled this afternoon for the Ilhuilli holiday. Since it's customary for families- especially newly formed families- to send holiday cards to friends and family, Kaname really wanted us to take a few photos for the occasion. A smiling baby will definitely look great in an image or two.

I quickly whip out my phone and take a few pictures of my baby as Kaname continues to bask in the moment. It ends a few seconds later when a snowflake falls on Mizuki's nose. The smile fades, replaced by a look of pure awe, leaving Kaname a bit saddened.

"Ah well, at least it happened," he sighs to what I think is himself.

We end up going inside after that mainly because with Mizuki through smiling, Kaname's attention is back on me and my lack of a thicker jacket. Since I still won't go change, we're forced to retreat back inside.

"I just don't want to risk you getting ill," He continues. Another eye roll as I pick up Mizuki's carrier (Kaname's still holding the baby) and head indoors ahead of him.

A couple of hours later and we're all dressed up in time for the photographer- some grey haired woman- to arrive to take our pictures. She's a good family photographer from what I've heard, and apparently has taken pictures of families such as Aido and Souen. She has two assistants with her when she arrives and seems overjoyed to be shooting for "Kuran-dono." Apparently no one's been able to capture the entire royal Kuran family for centuries, and doing this will, I'm assuming, definitely boost her business and make her very popular.

Before setting up her equipment the woman directs her assistants (who also double as wardrobe and makeup artists apparently) to get us ready. We (Kaname especially) already look perfect but it's usual for high end photographers to touch up their clients before taking their photos. Kaname refuses the treatment, however, while I simply shrug and let them do their thing. I'm used to it anyway.

"If you both don't mind, I would like to shoot the family in front of a lit fireplace first. I believe that will make everything very cozy," she says. Despite having taken photos of aristocrats before, the woman (I can't remember her name) still seems a bit anxious around my pureblood.

"That will be fine," Kaname agrees and his voice is, as always, like pure velvet; smooth and comforting and appears to ease her stress a bit. We move into one of the many rooms with a fireplace where- as Kaname lights the hearth- I try to get Mizuki to stop trying to eat the tiny bracelet dangling on her wrist (or rather gumming it until she hurts herself.)

Truth be told I'm kind of excited to have our picture taken as a family. Sure, this will be our first one as a family, but as a model who spends most of his time in front of a camera, it feels great to share this sort of experience with my daughter. My therapist said that it would be good to try and share something with Mizu, like a doll I liked when I was really little or something to help me better get along with her. That sounds good and everything, but I think sharing a photoshoot will be way better than any old doll.

Once everything is set up, we're directed to various spots and into poses. Some poses feel overly mechanical and awkward, while others actually seem casual and familiar.

Camera flashes dazzle and daze. They aren't really a bother for Kaname and I, but to Mizu they're bad enough to cause her to start crying and throw a fit. When this happens everyone is forced to take a break as Kaname and I try to calm her back down. It's in the midst of one of these moments that the woman asks if Mizuki has started to smile yet.

"Don't get me wrong, Kuran-dono, she is truly adorable and a pleasure to shoot, but I think it will look all too darling to see this little angel beam."

"I understand what you mean," Kaname begins, "She actually smiled for the first time today."

The woman's eyes instantly light up. "Well that's **wonderful** news!" she cries as she claps her hands together. "What made her laugh? I mean- do you think you can do it again to make her smile?"

Kaname shakes his head. "Not unless we go back outside."

The woman tilts her head in question. "We were having a snowball fight when it happened." I inform her.

From the look on her face I'm sure it's a surprising thing, imagining a pureblood run around like a child in the snow, but hey that _is_ what happened.

The photographer taps her chin. "Well, do you think you can try something else to make her smile?" She asks.

"Yes, I suppose we can try." And just like that we end up making ourselves into complete fools, playing games of peek-a-boo and such to get even the faintest grin from our kid.

I look back over my shoulder at one point and see the looks of joy, intrigue, and amusement as the photographer and her crew watch the great and all powerful pureblood and his high fashion model partner resort to things like tickling and making silly faces to get any sort of reaction from Mizu. One of the assistants are unable to stop a short burst of laughter as Kaname resorts to his "baby" voice to coo and coax Mizu to smile even a little… Okay, I'll admit that I laughed too, but not Mizu. No, she remains entirely immune to all of our attempts.

After a few minutes of doing these weird things we give up and resign to just continue the photoshoot without a smiling baby.

"Oh that's alright." The woman tries to hold back a chuckle as she speaks. "At least you two tried."

Yeah, yeah sure...

Kaname and I join Mizuki back on the sofa, Mizu being picked up to sit on her papa's lap. The flashes resume, but shortly after they do I start to feel a strange sensation. It starts in the back of my throat then moves up into my nose. It tickles but also irritates me and I feel like I should call another break until I figure out what's wrong. Before I can, however, I sneeze _really_ loud. Once, twice, I end up sneezing three times before the woman stops and asks me if I'm okay. I'm about to tell her that I am when I look over and see Kaname flashing me this disappointed sort of look. It remains me of the sort of looks that he gives me when I fail a school assignment or sleep through all the way through class.

"I told you to wear a coat." Is all he tells me as he moves our child further away from me. I don't say anything back but accept the tissue that an assistant hands me.

A few days later and the pictures are developed. We look through them and end up choosing what the photographer thinks is the perfect picture of the three of us. In it my eyes are squeezed shut as I jerk forward to sneeze, a blurry mess. Kaname is in mid eye roll beside me, and on his lap is a bright eyed, rosy cheeked, giggling Mizuki. Kaname agrees that it's perfect, but from that day on I am forced by him to wear a thick coat for the rest of the season.

x~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~x

_FLASHBACK:_

"_Mama, I think I'm sick."_

_The woman looked down at her young son from over the top of her magazine. _

"_Nonsense, Senri," the woman sighed, "Vampires of our caliber can't get sick."_

"_Really?" the little boy asked._

"_Really. Due to you being an aristocrat you never have to worry about catching a single cold. Okay?" And she leaned over and patted the boy on his head before returning to her reading. _

"_Okay, mama."_

* * *

**Author's Notes:**

Firstly, I know that I said that I would be updating every other Saturday, but I have a lot of things to work on and I didn't want to end up getting so caught up in my work that I end up forgetting to upload this in time. So, I pushed the date up a bit.

Secondly, I wanted to just flat out call this holiday Christmas, but because the mangaka of Vampire Knight doesn't use actual holidays (i.e. St. Xocolatl in place of Valentine's Day) in her manga, I decided to go along with that theme. So, I looked up what xocolatl meant and discovered that it's a combination of the Aztec Nahuatl words "Xococo" for bitter and "atl" for water/drink which is where chocolate basically got its name (or something like that.) I looked through some Nahuatl words and ended up calling the Christmas like holiday "ilhuilli" which basically means merit/due reward which makes sense for the gift giving aspect of the holiday.


	14. Chapter 11: Kaname

Flashback (Mid-November):

"_Listen, Cross, I'm- um- sorry about the other day." Senri looked away as he spoke, down at the streaks of color that swept across the floors and walls. He took a deep breath and continued with, "I overreacted with that voice message. I was just being paranoid and rude and stuff so… yeah…" _

_He scratched the back of his head, and hoped that this apology would be enough._

_Meanwhile, Yuki stood before him, baffled. She had never expected an actual apology from the aloof man. Maybe a veiled attempt at some good will gesture, but never an in-person apology. _

"_Oh, um, I- I forgive you, Senri-san." She smiled brightly as she told the young model that she never took it personally, and therefore had forgiven him the moment it had happened. _

_For some reason, the way that the school girl had accepted him apology made Senri feel ever guiltier than before. _

"_I was pretty stupid to think that you'd steal Kaname from me." The boy heard himself say these words, but it was by accident, a runaway thought. _

_Yuki's eyes widened. She frantically waved her hands back and forth and, with a pink face, swore, "Wha- No. No! I would _never_ do that!" _

_A sense of embarrassment sank into his guts then and made a knot there, tightening by the second. _

"_Yeah, I know that …" he muttered. _

_Now this feeling was washing over both of them. It filled the corridor and made the air stiff, and filled their senses and made them both uncomfortable. _

_Senri wondered if he should say something, but his mind went blank. Yuki's lips pulled tight. She cleared her throat, and forced herself to speak._

"_I did really like him thought."_

_A lurch in his chest. _

"_Really?"_

_She nodded her head causing short brunette locks to bounce around her childish face._

_The young man's breath hitched in his throat as he asked, "What about now?"_

_Yuki hesitated to answer. _

_Further down the hall, in one of the classrooms, a Night Class student laughed. Senri faintly wondered what was so funny, because from where he was standing Yuki Cross had finally admitted what he'd always known- feared-; that she was love with his husband… _

**lXl**

Current Day (Late December):

I lean back in my seat, and gaze out of the window. Outside, delicate snowflakes fall from dark clouds and join their brethren on the ground. It was on a day like this, exactly six years ago, that I was leaving my father's remains behind in order to find my precious Yuki. I can recall clearly the face of the vampire dog that tried to take her from me, along with her scent as I picked her up and cradled her in my arms. I told her that no harm would come to her, and felt her tears on my neck as she continued to weep. Now it is the anniversary of that day, and I find myself in disbelief of how fast time has passed.

"Kaname-sama?"

I look up to see Seiren staring at me, face expressionless.

"I'm still listening, Seiren," I lie.

She nods, looks back down at the small notebook in her hands, and continues her report of pressing matters. I faintly listen to them until I hear a certain name; Jiro Shiki. The window cracks at the just the sound of his name, and I struggle to regain myself.

"He wishes to speak with you, Kaname-sama. According to the guards, Shiki-san has begun to beg-"

I interrupt her with an abrupt thank you. "-But I'd prefer not to hear about that man. Please inform his caretakers that I will speak to Shiki when I deem it necessary and not a second sooner."

Seiren nods then jots something down. Her eyes flash up to examine the window panes before she finishes.

"Is that all?"

She nods.

"Then you may leave now, Seiren. Thank you."

My follower bows, pale hair falling in front of her face. "Yes, Kaname-sama." She then turns to leave. It's the instant that she touches the doorknob to my study that the doorbell begins to ring.

I don't have to look down to know that Mizu's face is scrunching as she is on the edge of crying and throwing a fit.

"I will answer it," Seiren volunteers, and she departs from my study. While she is away I return to reminiscing about the past.

The first image that comes to mind is that of my mother. The final look that she gave me was filled with such_ sorrowful_ that my heart broke at the sight of it. The warmth of her embrace as she pulled me against her is one that I will never forget, just like the undeserved but loving kiss that she placed on my cheek. Shortly after her death, my father fell as well.

I should be furious from this recollection, yet I cannot bring myself to entirely despise the man that caused it.

If it wasn't for _him_ I wouldn't be here right now. I certainly wouldn't have met the love of my life, as Senri wouldn't exist without Rido Kuran (however much I hate to acknowledge their connection). And without my love, I wouldn't have my dear princess.

"Ah… _Aah_!"

I look down to see that very princess staring up at me with eyes that remind me of both her grandmother's and her aunt's.

A resolved sigh passes my smiling lips. "If all of these tragedies were to bring you into this world, little one, than I believe that it was worth it," I tell her.

Her only response is sticking all of her little fingers into her mouth and attempting to chew on them. I take them out and hand her one of her toys instead. She instantly drops it and returns to gumming her hand.

"So stubborn," I chuckle. "Just like daddy."

It is as I play with my daughter that Seiren returns. "It was a package, Kaname-sama."

"From whom and to whom?"

"From someone named James H. Potter to Senri-sama."

I look up and examine the box. It's rectangular and nearly flat with a little note taped on the top.

"Would you like to check its contents?" She asks me.

I think about it for a moment before telling her no, give it to who it was intended for. I'm sure that Senri will tell me what it is later on anyway. And I am right because shortly after Seiren departs again, Senri- after rapidly knocking on the door- enters with a lingering look of fright.

"You need to put a bell on Seiren," he demands.

"Did she frighten you again, my dear?"

"_Surprised_." He is quick to correct me. "She _surprised_ me."

I smile and playfully shake my head.

"I will talk to her, my love." I reply. "So what did you have delivered?"

Senri settles back into a chair, "Just a book for Cross."

I raise a brow.

"Why did you buy a book for Yuki?"

He narrows his eyes and replies that it is for her birthday.

"We've already bought her a birthday gift though; several actually, remember?"

Senri nods.

"Yet you've bought something more for her. That's rather kind of you."

He rolls his eyes, but has a look of embarrassment to him. "Oh _please_, I only got it because we happen to like the same book series. I have a friend… an associate that happens to work at the author's publishing company, so I get the books early. Since Cross doesn't have those connections though, I would have to wait for it to sell, then for her to have the time and money to buy it, and _then_ wait for her to read all of it just so we can finally talk about it." He stops and sighs. "Long story short, it would be a hassle," he groans. "Just like talking about it."

"Hm, interesting..."

Interesting by the fact that Senri still pretends to be indifferent to my dear Yuki. In reality, however, the two of them have been getting along quite well since November. Due to this, Yuki has even begun to visit our home more often. She watches movies with us, talks with Senri in the living room about various books, and even plays with Mizuki. I even once overheard Yuki asking my love for fashion tips. Of course, all of these things have made me immeasurably hap…py…

"Nnngh…" A sharp headache bloom the back of my skull, and soon after a wave of nausea that nearly causes me to double over. I believe I actually would have were it not for Mizuki sitting in my lap.

Senri glances up. "Are you okay?" He asks and while his tone doesn't sound very concerned, his beautiful blue eyes speak volumes about his worry.

I nod and try to put on a brave face. "Yes, my love, I'm fine," I assure him. "It's just a slight headache."

"Are you sure?"

I nod again. Senri doesn't appear very convinced, though he, for now, accepts this. Meanwhile, I look at the glass set on my desk. It contains a deep red liquid that only faintly- mockingly- mimics the taste of true blood. For some it tastes fine, but for me the blood tablets leave behind a bitterer than sweet after taste. This taste is one that lingers no matter what I do, and all for nothing as the hunger still claws relentlessly at my stomach and throat, leaving nothing behind but crimson desires.

Senri's phone pings and it is as he is answering the text message that I open my tablet case and add two- no three… four- more blood tablets into my drink. I take a sip, but it does little to satisfy my bloodlust.

_It is never enough. _

**lXl**

"Welcome! Welcome!" Kaien ushers us inside with a wide but still tired smile.

"I'm so glad that you all could make it! I know that it must be difficult to make time for things like this these days, but it will mean _so_ much to Yuki that you came."

I nod. "I wouldn't miss one of Yuki's birthdays for the world."

"I'm happy to hear that," Kaien says, "I'm also happy to see this little cutie. Hello, Mizuki!"

At the sound of that Yuki pops out into the hallway.

Her face lights up instantly when she sees us, and she quickly makes her way over. "It's great that you're able to make it," she exclaims. "You're so late that I was afraid that something had happened."

I hug her in return. "I'm so sorry, Yuki. We had run into a little problem on the road, but all is well now." I explain.

My dear butterfly accepts this answer and turns to Senri.

"Hi, Senri-kun." She flashes a warm smile.

Senri meets her but before quickly looks away and shrugs. "Happy Birthday, Cross." Is all he says.

I shake my head at his antics.

"Where should I put these, Kaname-sama?"

Seiren stands behind me, her face hidden behind brightly wrapped boxes.

"Oh, you can just put those on the gift table. It's in the party room, first door on your left." Kaien points further down the hall.

"And where's the food?" Senri.

"In the party room as well."

My beloved nods. He then hands Mizuki over to me saying, with an absolute indifferent tone, "Hot potato."

Confusion and disbelief fills me. Kaien instantly begins to laugh, doubling over in the process. Yuki giggles sweetly, and I swear that I even hear a little snicker from Seiren.

"Ah-ha.. haa…" Kaien daps at the corner of his eyes with the end of his shawl, and gasps, "I never realized how silly Senri can be, even when he's appearing so impassive."

I agree and tell him that there seems to be a whole new side of my spouse emerging.

"Perhaps it is due to him being a parent now," I conclude.

Kaien believes so as well and just in time for someone to call out for Yuki further down the hall. She apologizes, gives me one final hug, and jogs away. It has always pained me to watch her go. It's as if she's leaving me behind each time, and I painfully imagine that I will never see her again.

_So why does this thought bring a smile to my face?_

"I feel like you've changed as well, Kaname-san. You seem… happier now than before."

I think on it for a second, and realize that I've smiled more in the past year than I have in quite a while. I gaze down at my little princess and know that it is because of her and because of Senri that I feel this warmth in my heart.

"You're right, Kaien," I agree. "I am happier. I suppose parenthood agree with us both."

**lXl**

A rainbow of balloons- some of which say "Happy Birthday"- fill the room accompanied by streamers and paper pom poms that hang from the ceiling. I look around and see that there aren't many people in attendance, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. The guests, meanwhile, are mostly from the Night Class.

I'll admit that I find this a tad troubling though. One of my wishes for Yuki was that she have a lot of friends, those that she could have fun with and lean on for support. While I've never specified this before, I've always wanted them to be human. Nevertheless- as I think about it- I suppose vampiric friends are still friends.

_One step at a time, Kaname. One step at a time… _

"So what did you think about volume 5?" Takuma and Aido chat nearby, by the bookshelf. "That twist at the end was such a surprise! I would've never _ever_ thought that Aiko was the one who killed Naomi's father. I mean, that was just mind blowing. I can't wait until the next volume!"

Aido rubs his forehead. "Yeah, it was *sigh* it was really great, Takuma." he mumbles and looks back over his shoulder to his cousin for help. None comes, however, but that is mainly because my right hand is distracted by a coy Ruka in the corner of the room.

I must say that out of everyone here, her presence surprises me the most. For years now I've been under the impression that she didn't like Yuki though it seems that I may have been wrong…

"Hello, old friend."

Takuma spins around, and grins upon seeing me. "Hey, Kaname! How are you doing today?"

"I've been well, thank you," I tell him. Out the corner of my eye I see Aido trying his best to sneak away. I think of saying something to him, but don't have a chance to.

"We'll finish talking about that manga in a bit okay, Aido?" Takuma doesn't even turn his head or spare a glance towards Aido as he speaks.

My rather irritating follower freezes, then slumps over as he retreats.

"Still forcing your books onto him, I see."

Takuma grins. "Yep!"

"You don't honestly believe that he is reading them, do you?"

"No, but I just like pretending that he has…. That and it's a bit fun to tease him," Takuma confesses.

_I can agree with that. _I think. _ It is pretty entertaining. _

"Oh! I see you brought little Mizu." Takuma leans down to get a better look at my princess. "Hi, sweetie. Did you miss your Uncle Takuma?"

A blank stare followed by a sudden spark of recognition.

My daughter regards her godfather with series of babbles and an outstretched hand.

"Yeah, you missed me." Takuma beams, and before I know it he's taking custody of my child.

"Go, have fun, mingle!" He insists, "I've got this cutie pie taken care of."

I feel as if I should protest for I don't- if I ever have- really like socializing. My friend leaves no room for argument, however, and I am forced to go socialize. It is while I munch on the occasional snack or make small talk with party guests that I notice something odd.

Yuki is more focused on Kiryu than I have ever seen her before. They've always been close- something that has bothered me on occasion- but this seems… different. And the look in Kiryu's eyes when she brings him a drink or stops by to chat is something that piques my concern.

I get Takuma's attention and ask him about it.

"I've noticed that too, but I honestly don't know." He twists his mouth and glances back over his shoulder. "You don't think they're… you know."

I don't have a chance to response before Kaien is nudging in between us.

"I'm so sorry to interrupt, but it's time to blow out the candles. Please go gather around Yuki while I go into the kitchen."

We forget out conversation, and go to fulfill his request.

"Um, Kaname-sama?" I look over to see Ruka at my side. From the look in her eyes, and from the looks that she has been giving me recently, she is worried though that is of no surprise.

"Yes, Ruka?" I take another drink of my fruit punch.

"Are you okay?" She whispers.

I don't bother looking down at her as I reply with, "Yes. Why do you ask?"

She hesitates to answer. "It's just that you don't look well." Another moment of hesitation as the song playing the background transitions to a soft guitar solo. It's almost calming, this song, and I wonder what it is.

"Have you been eating?"

Another drink and I tell her once again that I am fine, and repeat it a third time when she starts to request that I drink her blood.

"Besides, I don't think Kain would appreciate me drinking from his lover, no matter how much he respects me," I whisper back.

Her breath hitches and I smile. Kaien comes in a second later to lead us in song.

There is blundering and a sense of disunity at first, before we are able to join together and sing the perfect song. Yuki blushes and sheepishly looks about. I find this cute.

The crowd's sigh punctuates the end of song, cues Yuki to blow out the candles. She squeezes her eyes shut, wishes beneath her eyelids, and blows.

My little girl bounces in Takuma's arms as he asks Yuki what she wished for. Ruka instantly intervenes, fuming that it would be bad luck if Yuki answered.

Senri rolls his eyes. "She's so annoying," he groans. I lean into soft maroon locks and tell him to be nice. My love grumbles and leans into me, a bothered habit. I find this cute.

"Okay, everyone!" Kaien announces. He waves his hands into the air to get attention. "To save up on time, and because it is getting pretty late,"

"For humans." Aido.

"We'll go ahead and start opening gifts now. Feel free to eat while we do so though so that the cake won't go to waste."

Footsteps shuffle about the room in the act of separating into two groups; those who rather get cake first, and those who will temporarily ignore that desire. Kiryu is not in either of these groups. Instead he remains seated as he has the entire party, and watches Yuki from afar.

I examine him. Lavender purple only softens when he looks directly at Yuki, and hardens, like stone, once one of _our_ kind crosses before him.

When he ultimately stands all watch from the corners of their eyes as he makes his way towards Kaien. His foster father is standing at the gift table deciding which box he should hand off first. He looks up. Kiryu whispers something to him, something that confuses Kaien but that he nevertheless approves.

A bright blue box is set back down.

"_What is he doing?"_ Aido ponders.

"_What's Kiryu up to?" _Takuma.

I look down and see, not a look of confusion, but one that is a blend of intrigue and eagerness.

_What does he know?_

"Hey, Yuki," Kiryu calls out. Yuki stops mid bite and looks up at him.

"Hm?"

There is no verbal response, only action. He reaches inside his jacket pocket and retrieves a rather small flat box.

"Happy Birthday." He mutters.

My butterfly sets down her plate and takes the black case from Kiryu's hand. Everyone watches with intense curiosity as she opens it. Even Yuki's human friend leans over to get a peek.

"It's a-um…" Yuki trails off as she holds up Kiryu's gift. It is a small charm with… is that half of a heart?

"It's a cellphone charm. I know that you've been into them for a while now so…"

"O-oh! Thank you Zero, but- uh- what kind of shape is this?" Yuki holds the charm up to the light for further inspection.

Kiryu look away from her. A faint blush, barely noticeable, and a lurch in his chest.

"It's half of a heart; just like this one." He pulls out his own cellphone revealing the other half.

A lump forms in my throat, while a sparkle comes to her eyes.

"_I should be over all the butterflies_

_But I'm into you"_

"Zero, are these…"

"Yeah. They basically leads up to my second gift."

I then watch, dumbfounded and slightly enraged, as Kiryu grips the edge of the sofa and leans down. It feels- to me- to play in slow motion; the closing of Kiryu's eyes, the widening of Yuki's. Lips part but only slightly, like an awaiting sigh. Breaths mingle, but only for an instant before they kiss.

"_I'm still into you."_

**lXl**

Flashback Continued:

_Senri's heart stopped, then skipped, and picked up its pace. _

_His hands clenched at his sides, and for a moment he wasn't sure if he should vomit from stress or shout in offense. In the end he couldn't bring himself to do either of these things merely stood there, silent, throat dry, and stomach churning. _

_His mind began to race; thoughts pouring in and out of his head at a speed so fast that he could barely keep up._

What if she says yes? And if- if she says yes, what if Kaname finds out? Wait- could Kaname still have feelings for her too? No- wait- that doesn't make sense; that's not logical. But… but what if he-

_He gasped. "And now?" _

"_Now… I don't think I do."_

_A rush of relief swept over him. He exhaled and tried to calm back down._

" 11."

"_So you what?" He questioned her, "You just stopped liking him all of sudden? …Why?"_

_Yuki licked her lips. "One night I was on patrol when I saw a group of students idling in the hallway. Kaname-sama was amongst them, so I went to go say hello. I was getting closer when I noticed something strange. He had this… strange look in his eyes. It wasn't menacing or anything like that. It was actually warm and tender and- and... I had never seen him look that way before, not even at me."_

"_What was he looking at?" Senri asked that, but deep inside he already knew the answer, and his heart swelled at just the thought. _

_Yuki looked up and brown met blue as she replied, "You. He was looking at you, Shiki-san."_

"_..Me…" he repeated and Yuki nodded. _

"_And that wasn't the last time that I saw him look at you like that." Yuki stopped and took a deep breath. "Eventually, I came to realize that we- me and Kaname-weren't going to happen. Despite the feelings that he had for me, they were always going to pale in comparison to what he felt for you."_

_She blushed and so did Senri, and the two of them stood quiet in the Cross Academy hallway, unsure of what to say next. _

"_Oh… ok." Senri. _

"_I still want to be close to Kaname-sama and his family- if you don't mind!- but like I said I've come to terms with the fact that we'll never be together." Yuki's smile wide. "And I'm okay with that, because I've finally moved on."_

_Those last words brought up a certain image in his head, one of him and Alec from not too long ago. _

"_How do you know?" He said suddenly, "Like, how do you know when you're finally over someone?"_

"_Um, well I know that I've moved on because I've…. I'm with Zero now." _

_She pauses as the words seep into Senri's mind… _

"_And I don't think about Kaname-sama like I used to. I'm really happy with Zero. I mean, I wish he was more romantic, but for now it's fine. I'm happy to know that Kaname-sama has finally found some that means a lot to him, and it's allowed me to realize just how good Zero and I can be together."_

_Senri thought for a moment then gave a slow nod. "Alright… Thanks…"_

_He turned to walk away, but was halted by a sudden thought. "You… you should tell Kiryu how you feel." He shrugged. "Just sayin'." _

_And he departed into the dark._

* * *

*Announcer's voice* Next on _Life after Letters_: Discover the story behind Senri and Alec's puzzling past in this flashback chapter.

Why does Alec wish to drive a wedge between our star couple? What won't Senri admit about Alec to his husband? And did Senri know all along that he could have children?! Find out (uh… err… soonish?) here on FanFiction .net !

* * *

**Author's notes:**

I figured that with Kaname out of the picture romance wise, that Zero and Yuki would get together _far_ sooner than in the official manga. I think they're nice for each other anyways.

Also- and in regards to the next chapter- what do you guys think about Alec? Do you like him, dislike him, or feel indifferent towards him? And what do you think is the deal with him and Senri? I'm just curious is all. You can either send me a private message or leave a comment in the review section about it.

As always, comments or questions about this fanfic are welcome.

Have a good day (or night) and I you enjoyed this chapter, and will check in for the next one.

**:)**

P.S. Apologies for any grammatical errors. I'm still trying to find a good beta reader (ugh).


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